
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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Book ,r\55 

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DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES : 



CONSISTING OF 






REFLECTIONS AND PRAYERS, 



FOK THE USE OF 



YOUNG PERSONS. 



TO WHICH IS ADDED 



A GUIDE TO THE STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 




THIRD EDITION. 



LONDON: 

PUBLISHED BY 

ROWLAND HUNTER, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH YARD, 

AND 

CHARLES FOX, 67, PATERNOSTER ROW. 

1832. 






BACON AND KINNEBROOK, PRINTERS, NORWICH. 



■V\ -ft-* 



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PREFACE 

TO THE THIRD EDITION. 



In the Preface to the first edition of 
this work, dated 1823, the following 
words occur : — " Being yet young, I have 
a vivid remembrance of the ideas and 
feelings on devotional subjects which, -in 
early youth, I found to be the most im- 
pressive, and to excite the most powerful 
emotions, and which are by no means the 
same ideas and feelings which produce 
these effects at a more advanced age. 
Possessing these remembrances, I must 
believe that the young are best fitted to 



PREFACE. 



write for the young in most cases where 
the feelings and affections are concerned ; 
and therefore I have written down the 
thoughts which used to present them- 
selves in a natural train of reflection, and 
the prayers which I have been accustomed 
to form, under the guidance of able 
teachers, for my own use." 

After the lapse of nine years, I find 
myself no longer in the number of those 
" best fitted to write for the young" on 
the subjects of this volume. I find that 
I have lost much of my interest in the 
ideas and feelings which were penned, 
nine years ago, with fervency and truth. 
Coupling this fact with that of the favour- 
able reception of this work among the 
class for whom it is intended, I am con- 
vinced that my youthful opinion had so 
much of soundness in it as to render it 
unadvisable that the Reflections and 



PREFACE. 



Prayers should be altered to suit my pre- 
sent views and feelings, I have not dared 
to improve their value as compositions 
at the risk of impairing their congeniality 
with youthful emotions of piety. A few 
verbal corrections, and the occasional 
omission of a few lines are the only im- 
provements I have introduced into the 
Exercises. 

The Essay at the end is new, being de- 
signed to replace with advantage the 
Treatise contained in the former editions ; 
which Treatise I could not re-issue with 
satisfaction to myself, or, as I now think, 
with advantage to my readers. I can 
only hope that the possessors of the third 
edition will not think themselves losers 
by the exchange, 

It will be evident to many that, in 
sending forth again this my first work, I 
can have no other satisfaction in view 



PREFACE. 



than that of obeying the call of the 
public, whose word I am ready to take 
respecting the usefulness of the book. 
To render my acquiescence complete, it 
is necessary to place my name in the 
title-page. This I have resolved upon 
with the hope that my old readers will 
excuse me for not having done it before, 
and that my new readers will understand 
why I do it now. 

H. M. 

NORWICH, August, 1832. 



SUBJECTS OF THE REFLECTIONS. 



PAGE. 

Sunday Morning On the duties of the Lord's 

Day 1 

Sunday Evening On habitual devotion 8 

Monday Morning . . . On benevolence 15 

Monday Evening On the character of the 

Apostles Peter, John, and Paul 23 

Tuesday Morning . . On the government of the 

temper 29 

Tuesday Evening . . . On death 36 

WednesdayMorning On humility 43 

Wednesday Evening On self-government 50 

Thursday Morning . On the goodness of God 57 

Thursday Evening.. On charitable judgments 

of others 65 

Friday Morning Love and reverential obedi- 
ence due to Jesus Christ 72 

Friday Evening On the happiness of a future 

state 78 

Saturday Morning. . On the uncertainty of 

worldly enjoyments 8fr 

Saturday Evening . . On the value of time 92 



REFLECTION. 

SUNDAY MORMJVG. 

" A day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be 
a door-keeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents 
of wickedness." Psalm lxxxiv. 10. 

" And, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath 
day." Luke iv. 16. 

tor what purpose was the Sabbath instituted? Why 
was one day in seven set apart, as it were, from the 
world? and why do we quit our usual employments 
on that day, and repair to the house of God ? Because 
it is the Lord's day. All days ought to be devoted to 
the Lord; but on this I am especially called to give 
him praise, and to dedicate myself to his service. I 
well know that when I am employed in any interesting 
pursuit, or when I enjoy the recurrence of any favourite 
pleasures, they are apt to engross my thoughts, and to 
call off my attention from other pursuits or pleasures 
which do not so frequently present themselves to my 
mind. How much, then, must I be in danger of fixing 
my affections on the world and its affairs, if all my 

B 



2 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

time be given up to them ! God knows this, and has 
wisely and benevolently appointed a season when I may 
seek after pleasures which will never fade, instead of 
the transient enjoyments of merely mortal life. 

If this day is set apart for the worship of God, and 
for my own religious improvement, what should be 
my dispositions, and what my conduct ? I should be 
grateful for such opportunities of advancement in the 
most valuable species of knowledge ; I should remember 
with joy the numberless instances of God's bounty 
which it has been my lot to experience; and this 
remembrance should incite me to worship him in spirit 
and in truth, to offer him the homage of the heart. I 
must begin by thanking him for permitting me again to 
witness the return of this period of sacred rest : I must 
employ the leisure afforded by it in studying his word, 
both as contained in the bible and in those books which 
exemplify its doctrines, and will assist in impressing 
them on my mind. I must be especially careful not to 
read the words of truth in a negligent manner; but 
must diligently prepare my mind for dwelling on them 
with advantage, by excluding vain thoughts, by previous 
meditation, and by the remembrance of the infinite 
importance and great solemnity of the truths which I 
seek to impress upon my heart. I must " search the 
scriptures," as in them are found the words of eternal 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 3 

life; and let me, in humility and singleness of heart, 
receive the precepts, and rejoice in the promises, deli- 
vered through Jesus Christ, and not read them as a 
task appointed for the day -; by which the employment 
will be rendered worse than useless. 

A part of my time should also be devoted, if possible, 
to imparting to others, who have not enjoyed the same 
advantages as myself, that knowledge which may make 
them " wise unto salvation ;" for surely no leisure can 
be more usefully spent than in revealing to the poor and 
ignorant the light of heavenly truth, and in making them 
hail the return of the Lord's day with the same pleasure 
which I experience. " To the poor the gospel is 
preached 5" and to them it is, if possible, more important 
than to myself, that the Sunday should be distinguished 
by the acquisition of religious knowledge, and the impres- 
sion of religious truth. On this day, more especially, are 
we reminded that all mankind are the children of a com- 
mon Father, all created for the same purpose, all tending 
to the same end, all heirs of the same immortality. On 
this day should all the lesser circumstances of life be for- 
gotten, in comparison with those in which all have a 
common interest ; and on this day, therefore, should we 
assist one another in the pursuit of what is most valuable, 
as we also would ourselves be assisted. Let it be my care, 
then, by the benevolence of my conduct, and the cheer« 



4 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

fulness of my temper, to render this period of rest a day 
of happiness to others as well as myself. 

While engaged in the public worship of God, may no 
vain and trifling thoughts intrude on the solemn repose 
of my soul. May no unworthy meditations usurp the 
place of those which are my duty, and should be my 
delight, in his holy place. Let me join with a pure heart 
and fervent spirit in prayer; and let the words of wisdom, 
which are addressed to me as well as to others, sink deep 
into my heart, and work in me the peaceable fruits of 
righteousness ! Of all the duties which are this day 
incumbent on me, one of the most difficult, and one of 
the most important, is to exclude unworthy thoughts. 
But surely there is time enough in the six days allotted 
to worldly employments, for all worldly meditations ; and 
how much is it to be lamented, that the short portion 
which should be devoted to the repose of the mind from 
all turbulent cares, should be rendered yet shorter by the 
want of self-control ! Did I properly estimate the plea- 
sures of devotion, no such difficulty would present itself 
to me. Did I feel love, joy, and peace in believing, no 
subjects of less delight would occupy my mind. Let me, 
therefore, endeavour to impress myself so deeply and 
frequently, on this day, and every other, with a convic- 
tion of the boundless power and goodness of God r and of 
the incomparable value of religion, that feelings of reve- 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 6 

rence and love towards my heavenly Father may be not 
only warm, but continued and permanent. May every 
thought, word, and action, throughout this day, conduce 
to this end ; and then indeed it will be blessed to me. 

For many days my thoughts have been chiefly occu- 
pied with those worldly pursuits which demand a large 
share of my attention : let me spend this day in medi- 
tating on the "vast concerns of an eternal world ;" in 
studying the example and precepts of Jesus, and in 
endeavouring to make God my friend, by subduing every 
inclination which can lead me to disobey him. Let me 
worship in his courts with an humble and thankful 
heart; and strengthen those principles, and confirm 
those feelings, which shall urge me forward in the way 
of peace and holiness. Let me now begin the duties of 
the Lord's day, by asking God to assist me in every 
good purpose. 



6 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

PRAYER. 

SUJVDAY MORJVIWG. 

O thou, the eternal and unchangeable God. 1 whose 
wisdom, power, and goodness, are infinite, deign to accept 
the humble praises of a grateful heart, the adoration of 
a soul which comprehendeth not thy greatness. Thou 
hast created the heavens and the earth, and the mighty 
sun which giveth light upon the earth ; the moon and stars 
are also thine. All these things shew thy power and good- 
ness : but they shall all perish, and be no more, whilst 
thou shalt endure for ever. The world and all that it 
contains shall pass away, but thou shalt remain. And 
man, the creature of thy hand, poor, feeble, sinful man, 
shall also be immortal. Blessed be thy name, O Lord ! 
for thou hast given me life ; thou hast bestowed on me 
more blessings than I can number ; thou hast granted 
me the power of becoming good and happy here ; and, 
above all, thou hast promised that I shall live for ever, 
and hast pointed out to me the way to unfading happi- 
ness, by the revelation of thy gospel. Thou hast set 
before me a pure and perfect example of holiness, and 
hast bestowed on me the means of knowing and doing 
thy will. "What have I done, that I should be the object 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 7 

of such unspeakable bounty? How have I deserved 
that thou shouidest thus shower thy blessings upon me? 
Alas ! I have been unworthy of thy favours. I have not 
given my whole heart unto thee. I have not continually- 
remembered thy goodness, and been thankful unto thee. 
Lord ! pardon me, I beseech thee. Impress my heart 
with holy gratitude and love. May the comforts I 
enjoy, the gifts of thy hand, never shut my heart against 
thee, and render me forgetful of thy presence. May my 
affections never be fixed on the fleeting things of this 
world ; but may I seek after thy favour, which is better 
than life ; and may I love virtue more than all the world 
can bestow. May thy grace, O Lord ! dwell in me, and 
guide me in the way which leadeth to life everlasting. 
On this holy day may I devote myself to thee, and gain 
more knowledge of thy will, and greater strength to 
perform it. 

I ask not these blessings for myself alone, but for all 
mankind, May all men at length be enabled to acknow- 
ledge thee as their Creator, Preserver, and Benefactor ; 
thy Son Jesus Christ as the perfect example of all holi- 
ness ; and thy goodness as worthy of unceasing and ever- 
lasting praises. 

I commit my life, and all that I have, into thy hand ; 
knowing that thou wilt do what is best for me, and only 



8 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

beseeching thee that thou wilt render me in some measure 
deserving of thy goodness. 

May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of 
my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord ! my strength 
and my redeemer. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

SUNDAY EFEJVIJVG. 

" Follow after holiness, without which no man can see the Lord."— 

Heb. xii. 14, 
" "Whether ye eat, or whether ye drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to 

the glory of God."— 1 Cor. x. 31. 

I have this day entered the house of God. I have heard 
of his wonderful perfections ; of his unceasing care of his 
rational creatures ; of his love for them, which he mani- 
fested by sending his Son Jesus Christ into the world, to 
reclaim them from sin. Have I not received pleasure 
from the conviction of his goodness ? and do I not feel 
secure and happy under his guardian care ? Oh yes ! 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. r 

and why should not the best pleasures I have this day 
enjoyed be mine for ever ? The study of his perfections is 
ever open to me ; and I am invited to hold communion 
with him in prayer. 

If I accustom my mind to take delight in the contem- 
plation of the divine nature, new pleasures will conti- 
nually offer themselves to me. If I consider the heavens, 
the work of his fingers, the moon and stars which he hath 
ordained, I shall find elevated enjoyment in the thought 
of his infinite power. If I observe how all things that he 
hath made depend on one another, and work together for 
the good of the whole, through all that part of the vast 
creation which comes within the bound of merely human 
perception, I must be astonished at the wisdom which 
could form and execute such a plan. If I think how care- 
fully he has attended to the happiness of his creatures ; 
that he has never caused a want without providing a 
supply ; that he has given to the inferior orders of beings 
enjoyments suited to their capacity for pleasure, and to 
Man the power of becoming happy here, and infinitely so 
to all eternity; I must not only adore, but love, the 
Being whose beneficence equals his power and wisdom. 
Whatever my eyes behold may remind me of him ; every 
gift which renders me happy may excite in me emotions 
of love and gratitude. The reflection that he is ever pre- 
sent with me may render me secure under all circum- 
b 5 



10 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

stances ; and subjects of the sweetest meditation may be 
ever at my command. 

If God bad not revealed himself to us in his gospel, I 
might have feared that a weak, insignificant creature like 
myself, would be beneath his notice ; would be, as it were, 
passed over, and forgotten, while so many vast designs 
continually require his care. But now no such fears need 
harass me. I now know that he, who formed me, watches 
over me ; is aware of the thoughts which now pass through 
my mind; and cannot for an instant forget me ; that as he 
loves all the works of his hand, he loves me, and will pro- 
vide for my happiness as long as I strive to deserve his 
favour. Can I then forget him who ever remembereth 
me ? Can I, who receive all good things from him, enjoy 
them without thinking of their Author? Can I form 
friendships with beings frail and sinful as myself, and seek 
no communion with him, who, if I love him, will never 
leave me, nor forsake me? Shall I be intent on gathering 
together the luxuries of life, when he can disperse them 
in a moment, or change them into bitter sorrows ? Much 
rather let me make God my friend ; let me receive his 
gifts with gratitude ; let me seek after the heavenly plea- 
sures of devotion, which become sweeter as other enjoy- 
ments fail. Let me remember that God is present, not 
only while I pay my stated devotions to him, but during 
every moment of my existence. Why then should I con- 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 11 

fine my thoughts of him to those times ? I continually 
need his assistance in all the little trials and temptations 
which befall me ; and his ears are ever open to me, and 
his love is always ready to assist me. Let me joyfully 
thank him for every pleasure, and then the gift will be 
sanctified to me : let me seek his consolations in every 
sorrow, and its bitterness will be assuaged. 

Great as are the delights of devotion in times of 
prosperity, in affliction their value will be infinitely 
increased. From the portion of sorrow which has been 
my lot, I am aware of the insufficiency of worldly com- 
fort. The consolations of religion alone are able to 
relieve the wounded heart. While the pursuit of all 
that this world can afford is at times distasteful and 
irritating to the mind, the reflection that he who made it 
liable to suffering is beholding and pitying the grief his 
mercy and wisdom saw fit to inflict, and is able and 
willing to remove it as soon as it has fulfilled its end, is 
a source of unspeakable comfort. I know the relief of 
pouring out a full heart into the bosom of a friend, 
though that friend can only afford sympathy and fallible 
counsel. How great, then, must be the comfort of con- 
fiding my sorrows to an Almighty friend ! to one whom 
I have loved above all things, in the midst of prosperity ! 
I must, like all my fellow creatures of mankind, some- 
times endure sorrow ; and may these consolations then 



12 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

be mine ! Let me increase the value of the blessings I 
now enjoy, by considering them as the gifts of a tender 
Father; and let me render my gratitude acceptable to 
him, by a proper use of them. Let me pray to him 
every morning and every evening for his protection and 
blessing ; and let my thoughts dwell upon him con- 
tinually during the day. If I always act under a convic- 
tion of his presence, and with a desire of pleasing him, 
every thought and every deed will become an act of 
devotion. Thus shall I cast all my cares upon him who 
careth for me ; and thus only can I secure to myself the 
possession of peace in this world, and the inheritance of 
joy in that which is to come. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 13 



PRAYER. 

SUNDAY EFEJVIJVG. 

O thou, Almighty and ever-present God ! who 
knowest all the thoughts of my heart, accept, I beseech 
thee, the tribute of sincere gratitude and praise which I 
now offer unto thee. I know that wherever I go and 
whatsoever I do, thou art with me. All things that I 
behold are the works of thy hand. Thou sustainest me 
in life, and continually watchest over me, to provide for 
my wants, and to shield me from danger. Knowing that 
thou art within me, above me, and around me, may I 
make this knowledge a source of comfort to myself by 
deserving thy love. May I not, while enjoying the gifts 
of thy providence, be forgetful of the hand by which 
they are bestowed. May I not live without thee in the 
world ; nor seek after those pleasures which war against 
the soul, and which would subject me to thy displeasure. 
Thou hast promised thy grace to those who seek for it 
with sincerity of heart. O, then, lift up the light of thy 
countenance upon me, that the darkness of guilt may 
never overshadow me. Let thy love reign in my heart, 
that the desire of sinful pleasures may never enter there. 
In the hours of gladness, may I devote my best powers 



14 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

and affections unto thee ; for in sorrow there is no help 
but in thee. At every return of this solemn day, may I 
feel that I have advanced in wisdom and goodness, and 
that I am more worthy of being called a follower of my 
blessed Saviour. 

Continue to me, as far as thou shalt see fit, the com- 
forts and blessings I now enjoy, especially those I most 
highly prize, the means of improvement in knowledge 
and piety. I ask not to be exempt from sorrow; but 
when it comes, may it be borne with meek resignation, 
and cheerful acquiescence in thy will. May I seek con- 
solation from thee, who alone canst alleviate the sorrow 
thou hast caused. Whatever may be my lot, may the 
pleasures of devotion, and the peace arising from trust in 
thee, be unalloyed by self-reproach, or the miseries con- 
sequent on sin. May I pass through life, supported by 
thy hand, rejoicing in thy love, and relying on the glo- 
rious promises of thy gospel ; and may the stroke of 
death, whether it come early or late, find me disposed 
peacefully to surrender my soul into thy hands who 
gavest me being, and hoping, through thine infinite mercy, 
to enter joyfully into the presence of thy glory, and to 
taste of those pleasures which are at thy right hand for 
evermore. 

I ask all in the name, and as the disciple, of thy Son 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 15 

Jesus Christ : through whom I would ascribe unto thee 
all honour and praise for ever. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

MOjXDAY morjvijvg. 



" This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have 

loved you." John xv. 12. 
" Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep." 

Rom. xii. 15. 



I observe, wherever I direct my view, that nothing, in 
all the vast creation, is made to exist alone. All things 
depend on one another for something essential to their 
existence. The sun, and the worlds which circle round 
it, are balanced by other systems through the power of 
attraction. We can perceive that the earth could not 
bring forth fruits, without the assistance of the sun and 
the rain. The sun draws up steams and vapours from 
the ground, which fall again in showers, and refresh 
the earth, and enable it to produce those stores, which 
serve for the support and delight of the living creatures 
which inhabit it. These animals, in their turn, serve as 
food for one another and for man, Man, dependent on 



16 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

the ranks of beings below him for subsistence, can 
enjoy none of the pleasures and advantages of life 
without the assistance of his own species. As the 
community of mankind is formed by my wise and 
benevolent Father, different individuals are endowed 
with different powers, inclinations, and talents; and 
thus scarcely a want can arise, which some one is not 
able to supply ; and not one link in the whole chain of 
society is wanting. 

By this constitution of things I plainly perceive 
that men are brought into the world, not to live in 
selfish, miserable independence, but to promote the 
happiness of each other. They are all the children of 
a common Parent, and were evidently intended to be 
social beings, and (what it is to be hoped they will in 
time become) a happy community. If I believe this to 
be the intention of my Maker, let me consider what I 
am to expect from my fellow- creatures of mankind, and 
what I owe to them. I know that all blessings proceed 
primarily from God; but he has given them to me 
by the hands of his creatures : and I can in no way 
render my gratitude more acceptable to him, than 
by doing, in my turn, all that I can to promote the 
good of those whom he hath made. I owe my support, 
and the care of my infancy, to those parents and 
friends who with disinterested kindness have brought 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. YJ 

me up, and rendered me happy when I could not 
reward their care. Even now, do I not owe all the 
comforts of life, of which I possess so large a share, to 
the labours of others ? And what do I, in my turn, for 
them ? It is but little that I can do ; but I may always 
find some, less blessed than myself, whom I can assist 
in time of need : some more ignorant than myself, 
to whom I may impart a portion of knowledge : and, 
were nothing else in my power, there are always 
some whose joys will be increased by my participation, 
and whose sorrows will be soothed by my sympathy. 
Have I not friends, to whom it is my duty to pay 
kind domestic offices and observances ? Can I not 
find, in the abodes of sorrow, those whom I may 
nurse in sickness, sooth in distress, or relieve in want ? 
Are there not, among the old, some whose passage to 
the grave may be cheered by my respectful attention, 
my forbearance of the failings incident to age, and 
my gratitude for the advice which experience loves 
to give ? Are there not, among the young, those 
whom I may benefit by the services of disinterested 
friendship ? My power of doing thus will increase 
with my years : may the disposition increase likewise ! 

The most powerful arguments, however, for the prac- 
tice of benevolence are offered by our holy religion, 
whose chief aim and end is the encouragement of this 



18 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

virtue : and in proportion to my advance in it will be my 
progress in religion. The beloved Son of God was the 
purest example of its perfections ; and the tendency of 
all his discourses was to inculcate it. He fed the hungry, 
healed the sick, comforted the sorrowful, encouraged 
and pardoned the repentant : employing his miraculous 
powers for the good of others, while he himself under- 
went every species of suffering. The tenor of his 
instructions ever was, " Freely ye have received, freely 
give :" " Sell that thou hast, and give to the poor :" 
" Give to him that asketh of thee :" " Love your 
enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing 
again." And in his description of his second coming, 
benevolence appears to be the chief qualification for 
enjoying his rewards. Great are these rewards. No 
less than treasures which nothing can corrupt — trea- 
sures which increase in proportion to self-denial — 
treasures which fail not, eternal in the heavens : the 
cheering consciousness that the merciful shall obtain 
mercy ; the conviction that God Ioveth a cheerful giver ; 
that the alms which are given in secret shall be openly ac- 
knowledged and recompensed, at the resurrection of the 
just ; and above all, the anticipation of that soul-stirring 
invitation to those who have fed the hungry, clothed 
the naked, visited the sick and imprisoned, to enter into 
the enjoyment of the happiness prepared for them from 
the foundation of the world. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 19 

In all the works of God, how apparent is his fatherly 
love for his creatures ! None of his perfections is more 
evident ; and there is none which it is more my duty to 
imitate. In this respect I may strive to become perfect, 
as he is perfect. While on earth, I may promote and 
encourage the growth of that blessed disposition, the 
exercise of which will, in all probability, form a part of 
my happiness in another state of being. It is reasonable 
to conclude this, as it is evident that those whose whole 
minds are engrossed by the care of their own happiness, 
are little fitted for dwelling in the presence of God, 
who is love itself; of Jesus, who gave himself for 
us ; or of those holy men who offered their lives 
to secure the richest and best blessings to mankind. 
O 1 surely the spirit of love is the noblest and best 
which can dwell in the human heart ! It is a portion 
of God's own spirit : it is the mind which was in Christ 
Jesus ! 

O ! noble example of this glorious virtue, let that 
mind be in me also ! May thy labours, thy sufferings, 
thy strivings to promote the good of all men, not be 
lost upon me ! May they animate me to follow in thy 
steps, to press forward towards the goal which thou 
hast reached, like thee seeking no reward but the favour 
of my God, and the love which he will hereafter extend 
to those whose benevolence will no longer be exerted in 



20 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

overcoming or alleviating evil, but in promoting the 
continually increasing happiness of kindred spirits, 
through all eternity ! 



PRAYER, 

MONDAY MORNING. 

Almighty God ! the Father of men ! to whom I owe life 
and all its enjoyments, with humble gratitude I bow down 
before thee, to bless thee for thy continued mercies. Thy 
power called me into being ; thy goodness preserved me 
during the helpless period of infancy ; hath surrounded me 
with all the means of enjoyment and improvement ; hath 
placed me among those who have been careful of my wel- 
fare, and who have taught me to look up to thee as the 
giver of all good, and to find delight in praising thee. 
Thanks be to thee, O Lord ! for all thy goodness. With- 
out thy protecting care, I could not have escaped from 
danger and from death : if thou hadst not granted me the 
tidings of salvation, I had lived in ignorance of thee : I 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 21 

had possessed thy gifts without knowing their Author, 
and had been but little above the brutes that perish. If 
thou hadst not caused the light of thy gospel to shine 
upon me, I had had no guide to life everlasting, no hope 
in death. What shall I render unto thee, O Lord ! for 
all thy mercies ? What can I do to please thee ? I will 
gratefully enjoy thy gifts; I will contemplate and strive 
to imitate thy perfections ; I will use the powers which 
thou hast given me for the good of others ; I will endea- 
vour to glorify thy gospel, by leading a life, holy, harmless, 
and undefiled. Thou hast graciously promised that, if 
performed with a sincere and pure heart, thou wilt accept 
these humble services. O Lord ! grant me thy grace to 
live according to thy will. Assist me to overcome pride, 
vanity, selfishness, and all other sinful dispositions. May 
the same mind be in me, which was in Christ Jesus our 
Lord ; may I be, like him, meek, humble, and devout ; 
may I, like him, labour continually for the good of man- 
kind ; may I, like him, give up all worldly advantages 
which are incompatible with obedience to thee. If any 
offend me, may I exercise his forgiving spirit ; may I be 
his faithful follower on earth, and at length be thought 
worthy, by sincere, though imperfect obedience, to enter 
into that happy kingdom, where he is seated at thy right 
hand, and where the spirits of the just made perfect shall 
rejoice in thy presence, for ever and ever. 



22 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

I thank thee, O my Protector ! that thou hast guarded 
me from danger during the past night, and that thou hast 
permitted me to arise in peace this morning. Be with me, 
and all whom I love, I beseech thee, through this day : 
grant us all that is necessary to our well being, and above 
all, that we may spend each moment in thy fear. And 
when we retire to rest this night, may it be with a peace- 
ful consciousness of thine approbation, and with hearts 
and minds better fitted for thy service. 

Hear my prayers, O Lord ! and may thy blessing rest 
upon us for ever and ever. Amen. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 23 

REFLECTION. 

MONDAY EVENING. 

" Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me 
more than these ? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord ; thou knowest 
that I love thee. He saith unto him, feed my lambs." John 
xxi. 15. 

" When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing- by 
whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy 
son ! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother ! And from 
that hour that disciple took her unto his own home." John Lx. 
26, 27. 

"[Paul] is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the 
Gentiles." Acts ix. 15. 

It is a pleasing reflection, that the gospel not only fur- 
nishes me with rules for the regulation of my conduct 
under all circumstances, but also sets before me a variety 
of characters, which may serve either as warnings or 
examples to me. Our Saviour himself was the model by 
which I may perceive what perfection I ought to aim at ; 
and by the examples of the Apostles I may learn that 
men of various and strong passions, in the midst of 
dangers and temptations, without advantages of educa- 
tion, were able to overcome the world, and to live and 
die the faithful disciples of their glorified master. 



24 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

Peter was a man of impetuous, and, at first, ungo- 
verned feelings : at one time declaring that Jesus was the 
Christ, the Son of God ; and at another, notwith- 
standing this conviction, meanly denying him : at one 
time declaring that, though all others should leave their 
Lord, yet he would not forsake him; and then flying, 
with the rest, in the moment of danger : now wrought 
upon by terror to disclaim all knowledge of the Saviour 
who had offered him eternal life : and then melted by the 
one look which Jesus cast upon him, going out and 
weeping bitterly : now dismayed and dejected by the 
death of his master, and afterwards animated, aud, as it 
were, inspired, by the confirmation which the resurrec- 
tion of Christ gave to his doctrine, coming forward fear- 
lessly and intrepidly as the witness of the life, words, and 
actions of him who was despised and rejected of men. 
This was the time when Peter struggled to vanquish his 
ignoble terrors : he seems now to have cast away what- 
ever remained of the spirit of worldliness ; he now faced 
a life of danger and a violent death, and never after, but 
in one single instance, do we find a trace of the weak- 
nesses it must have cost him so much to surmount. 
And yet, exalted as were his virtues, how great was 
his humility I The writings of the Evangelist Mark 
were seen by him, and he had the power of 
palliating, if not of concealing, the errors of which 
he had been . guilty during the life of Jesus : and 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 25 

yet how openly are those errors avowed ! and what 
a proof is this of his humility, and zeal for the honour 
of his Lord ! I know that he spent his life in promoting 
the spread of the gospel, and at length sealed his testi- 
mony with his blood. Let me honour his character 
with all the reverence and admiration such intrepid 
virtue demands ! 

The apostle John was a very different character. In 
him, meekness, gentleness, and benevolence abounded. 
It is a proof how highly these virtues were esteemed 
by Jesus, that the apostle who possessed them in the 
greatest degree was chiefly distinguished by his love. 
To his care our Saviour consigned his bereaved mother, 
and well did John fulfil his trust, and happy must he 
have been, that his master considered him worthy of 
the charge. We hear little of him after the death of 
Jesus, except that he also underwent his share of 
suffering, that he inculcated and practised the love 
of God and of mankind, and that a peculiar and glorious 
revelation was made to him in his old age. 

The most striking and distinguished character of all 
among the followers of Jesus, was that of Paul, 
the apostle of the Gentiles. The man brought 
up in the prejudices which wrought such harm to 
the gospel; the man who assisted at the stoning of 
c 



26 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

the first martyr; who breathed out slaughter against 
the Christians ; afterwards became the champion of the 
faith he had striven to put down, and preached the 
doctrines of him, at whose ignominious death he had 
rejoiced. He was thought worthy of a special revela- 
tion from our Saviour, and nobly did he, from that 
moment, devote the vast powers of his mind, all he had, 
even life itself, to the service of God. Never, through 
years of sorrow, danger, and suffering of every kind, 
did he repent the sacrifice he had made : never did 
he shrink from trials the most hard for human nature 
to endure ; but, approaching more nearly than any 
other character which history presents, to the perfec- 
tions of him, whom not having seen, he loved, he 
performed the great work of preaching the gospel in 
strange lands, where the true God was unknown : and 
vast indeed is the debt of gratitude which I, and genera- 
tions yet unborn, owe to his labours. 

Let me dwell on the virtues of these great men, till I 
become animated in some degree by their spirit. Let 
me endeavour to acquire the fervour and earnestness 
of Peter, the meekness and benevolence of John, the 
steadfast faith and universal charity of Paul : and then, 
and not till then, shall I have duly profited by the glo- 
rious revelation with which God has blessed me. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 27 



PRAYER. 

MONDAY EVEMJYG. 

O thou! who triest the heart, and hast pleasure in 
uprightness, wherefore should I, frail and imperfect as 
I am, dare to seek communion with thee, the greatest, 
wisest, and best of all beings ? But, great as thou art, 
thou hast promised to hear the prayer of those who 
worship in spirit and in truth. The homage of a grate- 
ful soul is acceptable unto thee who delightest in mercy, 
and the supplications of the humble and contrite will 
not ascend to thee in vain. Blessed be thou, that thou 
hast permitted me to call thee Father, and that thou 
hast invited me, as a member of thy family of mankind, 
to pour out my soul before thee, and to seek thy support 
in distress and temptation. I will also offer up my 
tribute of ardent gratitude for the love which thou hast 
bestowed upon me, and which an eternity of praise could 
not repay. Through the past day thy favour hath still 
attended me. I arose in the morning, in peace and 
safety; I have been supplied with convenient food, and 
with all that is necessary to comfort and happiness. I 
have enjoyed the means of knowing thee better in thy 



23 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

word and in thy works, and having been thus blessed, I 
will lay myself down in peace and sleep, trusting that 
thy Almighty arm will still sustain me, and that thy 
watchful love will still guard me from evil and danger. 

I know, O God ! how unworthy I have been of thy 
favour. I know that I have followed too much the 
devices and desires of my own heart, and that thy bene- 
fits have not excited in me such gratitude as leadeth to 
implicit obedience. God of all mercy ! pardon the 
imperfections of my service : grant me thy grace to love 
and serve thee better. May I diligently study thy word, 
and may the examples of great and good men, there 
held out to me, induce me, like them, to overcome 
every weakness, to give up every sinful indulgence, and 
to conquer every temptation, rather than offend against 
thee, and draw down upon myself thy most righteous 
displeasure. 

To thy care I commend all whom I love, trusting that 
thou wilt protect them. O Lord! be thou our guide 
through life, our support in death, and our eternal por- 
tion in that happy state to which thou hast promised to 
admit all who faithfully and diligently serve thee on 
earth. 

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I would ascribe 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 29 

unto thee supreme honours and everlasting praises. — 

Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

TUESDAY MORNING. 

•*■ Do all things without murmurings or disputings." Phil. ii. 14. 

" Where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, 
gentle, and easy to be entreated." James iii. 16, 17. 

How does it happen that though God has bestowed on 
every man a large share of blessings ; though he has 
placed his rational offspring in a beautiful world, created 
for their enjoyment; though he has endowed them with 
social affections, and rendered the exercise of those affec- 
tions a source of the purest pleasure ; so little unalloyed 
happiness is found in the world? Many miseries un- 
doubtedly arise from causes out of the control of man, 
and many from the gross vices of the wicked ; but there 
is much unhappiness, independent of these causes. I fre- 
quently perceive that families, who are exempted from 
misfortune, who possess a competent share of this world's 



30 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

goods, and who practise no vices, yet are not at ease. 
Surely this must arise from the want of amiable disposi- 
tions. When all without is prosperous, there must be 
some mental disease which impairs their enjoyment ; and 
this disease I believe to be the want of control over the 
temper. How grievous is it, that this fault, which is 
never incorrigible, though, where long indulged, very 
difficult to overcome, should be suffered to make such 
ravages in comfort and peace ! How grievous is it, that 
beings who might make each other's happiness, and be a 
mutual support under unavoidable sorrows, should thus 
render themselves and each other miserable, from want of 
self-command ! Men, from bodily constitution, from early 
education, and from many other circumstances, grow up 
with different tastes, inclinations, and tempers, which, 
unless controlled and carefully managed, will occasion 
much injury to each other. But if each one were to con- 
sider the comfort, and make allowance for the weaknesses 
of his neighbour, and to govern his temper accordingly, 
how much of the misery of which all complain might be 
avoided, and how smoothly and agreeably would the 
affairs of life go on ! 

In the hour of calm reflection, my reason confirms 
these truths. But is my practice never at variance with 
my convictions ? I, like every one else, sometimes meet 
with crosses and disappointments. Is my temper always 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 31 

proof against provocation ? If offended, do I never 
resent ? If unjustly accused, do I with a soft answer turn 
away wrath ? Can I bear, with meekness and good 
humour, to have my intentions thwarted, my motives 
misunderstood, my benevolent designs frustrated, or even 
my failings rebuked, and my faults censured ? Is there 
no pertinacity in retaining my opinions, no obstinacy in 
my own will, no peevishness and irritability under vexa- 
tious circumstances, no sullenness under reproof ? Let 
me consider the necessity of correcting what is wrong in 
my temper, and strive to amend it, before the habit is 
grown too strong. It is absurd to say that my temper is 
good, while that of others is so : that I am good- 
humoured unless provoked, and that therefore the fault 
lies in others, instead of myself. I can never live in a 
society where tempers are all perfect : and if that were 
possible, accidents, which are under no one's control, 
would continually occur to disturb my tranquillity, if my 
peace were not beyond their power. It will continually 
happen that my charity will be abused, my favourite 
pursuits interrupted, my leisure broken in upon : and 
what remedy is there for these vexations, if my temper 
be not prepared to meet them ? Let me not think this 
a trifle beneath my care : let me not persuade myself 
that, because I am young, the task need not yet be 
undertaken. My life is in a great measure made up of 
trifles; and therefore nothing which affects my happi- 



32 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

ness in the smallest degree can be beneath my notice. 
I cannot form an idea how much the peace of future 
years may depend on the temper I now encourage ; but 
that they are very intimately connected, the examples I 
daily see assure me. 

How many families are obliged to sacrifice their 
comfort to one peevish, passionate, or sullen temper; 
and how unhappy and ungrateful should I be, if I were 
thus to repay the kindness of those who have brought 
me up, and endeavoured to teach me the lesson of self- 
government ! Let me be aware in time. Let me from 
this moment command myself when disposed to be 
vexed by unavoidable circumstances. It will doubtless 
cause me a struggle ; but let the struggle be made before 
it is too late, and my endeavours will be amply repaid by 
the peace which will be my portion. Let me remember, 
that the small trials which I meet with are no less sent by 
God than greater sorrows, and are equally intended for 
my good ; and therefore let me not be above calling in 
my religious principles to my aid; for where there is 
temptation, however small, their assistance will be 
necessary. 

Having thus resolved, let me adhere to my resolution. 
This very day, perhaps this very hour, some difficulty 
may occur which it will require resolution to overcome 






DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 33 

with good humour; and then let me call to mind my 
present reflections. After every victory, I shall find less 
difficulty in conquering. Let me never yield to tempta- 
tion of any kind, against the conviction of reason and 
conscience. 



PRAYER. 

TUESDAY MORJVLYG. 

O ! thou, all-powerful and all-wise God, all things 
were created by thee, and all things are at thy disposal. 
All that I have was bestowed by thee, and whatsoever 
I do is known unto thee. O Lord ! thou hast searched 
me, and known me : thou knowest my downsitting and 
mine uprising, and understandest my thoughts afar off. 
Thou compasseth my path, and my lying down, and 
art acquainted with all my ways. Thou art within me, 
and above me, and around me. Nothing cometh to 
pass without thy permission. No word can I speak, 
no thought can I indulge, which is not known unto 
thee. O ! may this conviction lead me to govern 
myself in thy fear, to live according to thy will, and 
c 5 



34 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

to submit myself to thy righteous dispensations. If 
gladness should be my portion, may my thoughts be 
filled with thy love, and may gratitude enhance every 
enjoyment : if sorrow should be appointed me, may the 
remembrance of thy superintending Providence, thy 
fatherly care, lead me to place unshaken trust in thee, 
and to yield cheerful submission to thy will. Though 
thou shouldest see fit to deprive me of all beside, yet 
thou wilt be ever with me, and nothing can estrange 
thee from the beings thou hast made. 

O Lord ! may thy grace preserve me from sin : may 
I fortify my soul, by the love of thee, against all 
temptations ; but if my feet should stray from thy ways, 
if my heart should no longer be a temple for thee to 
dwell in, may thy chastening rod bring me back to the 
paths of peace and virtue. Even if I be bowed down to 
the dust with sorrow, if every hope but that of pardon 
be lost, let thy chastisement not cease till I have once 
more learned to dwell in thy fear. But thou art of 
purer eyes than to behold iniquity : thou art a God of 
holiness, and in thy sight the wicked shall not stand. 
May I then never incur thy displeasure, but above all 
things seek thy favour, which is better than life. I 
beseech thee to grant me thy support in trial, thy love 
in prosperity, thy guardianship in life and in death. 
May I be a humble follower of our glorified master, and 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 35 

may my sincere, though imperfect obedience, be accept- 
able unto thee who knowest our frame, and rememberest 
that we are but dust. 

Grant unto all thy creatures, I pray thee, the things 
which are needful for their support and preservation. 
Accept my thanksgiving for the protection which thou 
hast hitherto afforded us. 

I ask these things of thee, the God who givest to all 
men liberally, and upbraidest not, as long as they ask 
in faith ; and in that faith I would ascribe unto thee, 
honour, glory> and praise, for ever. Amen. 



36 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 



REFLECTION. 

TUESDAY EVENING. 

" The sting of death is sin." 1 Cor. xv. 56. 

" The tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, 
and they shall be his people ; and God himself shall be with 
them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears 
from their eyes ; and there shall be no more death, neither 
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain ; for 
the former things are passed away." Rev. xxi. 3, 4. 

It is too common for the young, while in the posses- 
sion of health, to forget that their present enjoyments 
will not always last ; that the hour of death must come, 
and may, perhaps, come soon. If it must arrive, it 
seems almost impossible that so important an event 
should not engage their attention, even though they 
were assured that its approach would be long delayed. 
If I knew with certainty, that at some period of my life 
I should remove to a distant country, of which I could 
know little, but that it is essentially different from 
the one I now inhabit, in which my pursuits must be 
very unlike what they are at present, and that I must 
go alone, is it possible that so great a change should not 
engage my chief attention; especially if it might take 
place at any moment ? Would it not be the part of pru- 






DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 37 

dence to learn what I could of this other country, and to 
prepare myself, according to my knowledge, for being 
happy there ? Such should be my foresight with respect 
to the important change of death. Let me consider what 
this change is, and what is the fittest preparation for it. 

God has created me with a body and mind, endowed 
with various senses and faculties. He has placed me in a 
world which supplies me with all that is necessary for the 
support and enjoyment of the body and its powers. My 
animal senses meet with their appropriate gratifications, 
and are inlets to great pleasures. The mind is not so fully 
provided for. Though its faculties have large and delight- 
ful occupation in contemplating the perfections of the 
great Creator in his works, yet this is not sufficient for 
its capacities. The knowledge it is able to obtain is not 
enough for its desires : it continually seeks for fuller 
satisfaction, but cannot find it in this state of its exist- 
ence. Instead of obliging man to check the aspirings of 
his nobler powers, and chiefly to seek the gratification of 
the animal senses, God has promised that all men shall 
live again, after the body has been dissolved in death ; 
when, if previously prepared by the means which he hath 
granted, they shall obtain that perfect knowledge, and full 
enjoyment, for which they sought in vain on earth. 
Notwithstanding these hopes and promises, how many, 
instead of fitting themselves for the highest satisfactions, 



38 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

persist in gratifying the body only, which must soon die 
with all its pleasures ! One cause of this is the dread of 
the dissolution which must precede the initiation into the 
happiness of heaven. It is true that death is commonly 
accompanied by pain and sickness ; and there is, besides, 
something in the highest degree awful, in the prospect of 
entering a state of which we know little, but that it is 
materially different from the present. But these fears 
will be increased, instead of lessened, by deferring all 
preparation for the event, till its approach. Let me then 
prepare in time, both for death, and what will follow. 

God has revealed to us, that in heaven his manifest 
presence will be a source of enjoyment to the virtuous. 
Let me then, on earth, delight to study his perfections 
as far as they are open to my contemplation. Let me 
find happiness, now, in the conviction of his continual 
presence, that the same conviction may cause the same 
happiness in a higher state of existence. After death, all 
sensual enjoyments will be done away : let me now, 
therefore, make use of them only in subservience to 
intellectual pleasures. After death, I may be admitted 
into the presence of Jesus, who died for me, that I 
might gain entrance into that happy state. Let me 
study his virtues, and imitate them to the best of my 
power, that my communion with him may be more 
perfect. I am told that benevolence is an essential 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 39 

requisite for heavenly happiness. Let me then, as long 
as I live, be more careful for the good of others than 
for my own. Let me fortify my soul against the pains 
of sickness and the fear of death, by the reflection that 
the same merciful Father who has placed eternal happi- 
ness within my reach, inflicts these preparatory suffer- 
ings to enable me the better to obtain it ; and that he 
has promised himself to support me, if I put my trust in 
him, and endeavour to acquiesce in his will, however 
difficult that acquiescence may be. Let not any mortal 
fears then divert my attention from the glorious hopes 
beyond the grave. Let me not think only of suffering, 
till my soul turns for relief to views beneath it : let me 
not contemplate the dark valley of the shadow of deaths 
till I am tempted to trust to the delusive gleam of 
earthly pleasures; but let my gaze be fixed on that 
glorious region, where God himself shall be an everlast- 
ing light to those who, through faith and patience, 
inherit the promises he hath vouchsafed to mankind. 
But, above all, let me not, because the day of death may 
be distant, forget the necessity of these preparations. It 
is not the few last hours of expiring life which will fit 
me for immortality. The few last years, even, will be 
very insufficient for the work I have to do. If I am 
convinced that it must be done at all, nothing can 
excuse me from beginning it now. I have passions to 
subdue, grovelling inclinations to raise, wavering hopes 



40 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

to animate to steadfast faith, pride to change to humility, 
natural sympathies to strengthen into Christian bene- 
volence, attachment to this world to convert into the 
citizenship of heaven ! Can it ever be too soon to 
begin such a work as this ? It will require continual 
vigilance, and unremitted care, through whatever portion 
of time God shall be pleased to allot me. May his grace 
assist and sustain me to the end ! 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES 41 



PRAYER, 

TUESDAY EVENING* 

O thou glorious Being ! King eternal, immortal, 
invisible ! may these meditations of my heart be accepta- 
ble unto thee ! I would praise thee for thy mercy in 
having promised that thy creature, man, shall not always 
dwell in the midst of sin and suffering, but shall be 
enabled to enter that state where he shall be immortal 
as thyself; where thou shalt no longer be invisible ; but 
where thy manifest presence shall be a source of unfail- 
ing happiness to him. O may the glories of thy heavenly 
kingdom not be veiled from me ! May I find my 
supreme delight in thy presence while on earth, that it 
may be my joy hereafter! May I live on earth as a 
citizen of heaven ; not giving my soul to the vain and 
transitory pleasures of this world, which will delude and 
not satisfy, and which will lead me astray from thee, but 
contemplating thy perfections till I love things heavenly, 
and strive to lay up a treasure there, which shall be mine 
for ever. I know that to do this I must overcome sin ; 
I must patiently endure sorrow ; I must submit to the 
stroke of death ; I must prepare for judgment. Do 
thou, O Lord ! strengthen me against trial ; arm me with 



42 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

heavenly fortitude against suffering ; and support me in 
death ! When I am stretched on the bed of sickness, 
when the passing scenes of this world recede from my 
sight, when the awful realities of a future and eternal 
state open upon my view, do thou calm my anxious 
fears, dispel my doubts, strengthen my sinking heart, 
and confirm my wavering faith. May no mistrust of 
thy goodness disturb my departing spirit, but may peace, 
the peace which passeth all understanding, the peace 
which Jesus promised to his true followers, sustain me 
in that awful hour; and may it be succeeded by thy 
acceptance of my imperfect services ! 

To thee, O God ! do I commit myself, knowing that 
thy tender mercy will do what is best for me ; and, as 
long as I obey thee, I will fear no evil. 

These blessings I ask, not for myself only, but for all 
men. May the knowledge of thy glorious gospel, con- 
firmed by the resurrection of him who preached it, 
spread over the whole earth. May all men, at length, 
know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom 
thou hast sent ; and may this knowledge lead them to 
live in thy fear, enjoying the blessings of thy love. May 
thine infinite mercy at length re-unite us all in that 
better world, where sin and sorrow shall be known no 
more ; where the wicked cease from troubling, the weary 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 43 

are at rest, and the virtuous enjoy eternal happiness in 
the presence of thy glory. 

Unto thee be all blessing and praise for ever. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

WEDNESDAY MORNING. 

" A man can receive nothing except it be given him from heaven/' 

John iii. 27. 
" Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same is 

the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Matt, xviii. 4. 

I have often been struck by the pertinacity with which 
young persons maintain their own opinions, and their 
unwillingness to allow weight to the advice of those, who 
by age and experience, have gained more wisdom than it 
is possible for the young to possess. And it is not less 
worthy of remark that the wisest, both as to human 
learning and divine attainments, are ever the most mo- 
dest and open to conviction. Surely, then, humility 
must be a part of wisdom : otherwise this order would be 
reversed ; those who are the most able would also be 



44 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

the most willing to teach, and the youthful and inexpe- 
rienced would thankfully learn. Lest I should fall into 
this error of ignorance and folly, I will reflect on the 
importance and necessity of acquiring the virtue of Hu- 
mility. 

If I consider humility only as a reasonable and becom- 
ing respect which the young should pay to the aged, its 
value is great : but when I reflect that it is a Christian 
virtue, and one on which most others are founded, its 
importance becomes unspeakable. Without humility, I 
cannot receive the instructions of the gospel into a teach- 
able heart ; and while my heart does not assent to its 
truths, my progress can be but small. Without humility 
I shall not fully avail myself of the assistance which the 
ministers of religion and other spiritual guides are able 
to afford; and this great means of improvement will be 
partly lost to me : and above all, if I do not entertain a 
due reverence for this noble virtue, I cannot appreciate 
its beauty as displayed in the character of Jesus ; and 
therefore my imitation of this perfection in him will be 
wanting. 

Christian humility is not, as many suppose, a negative 
virtue, a natural disposition of the mind, with which 
some are constitutionally endowed, and in which others 
are deficient. It is an acquired virtue ; one which needs 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 45 

much resolution and great efforts, to establish so firmly 
that other virtues may be founded upon it. It may be 
acquired by steadily contemplating the sins and weak- 
nesses of the heart, and by impartially comparing the 
attainments in virtue already made with the character 
of Jesus ; and not, as is too frequently done, by con- 
trasting them with the follies of those who are frail and 
faulty as ourselves. If I compare myself with those who 
have not enjoyed equal advantages, I shall be in danger 
of becoming inflated with a sense of my fancied supe- 
riority, while perhaps they, considering their opportu- 
nities, have made greater advances than myself. Even 
in a comparison with the wise and good among men, 
I may be humbled, but not humbled enough. One 
standard of excellence is fixed, which will never vary ; 
and as long as I fall short of that, I shall have reason 
for the exercise of humility. Unless springing from this 
root, all my good qualities will be but as the flowers of 
the field, shaken by every blast, and withered by the 
first scorching ray. Fortitude, if not proceeding from 
the humblest submission to God, will not be a Christian 
virtue ; it will be of the same nature as that practised 
by heathen philosophers before the revelation of our 
religion ; admirable indeed in them, but cold, cheerless, 
and hard to maintain, in comparison with that secure 
and perfect reliance on an Almighty Guardian, which 
is the duty and the privilege of the Christian. 



46 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

Charity, in the largest sense of the word, is in the 
highest degree promoted by humility. If I know by 
experience the difficulty of overcoming my own weak- 
nesses, I shall be inclined to give my compassion and 
assistance to those who need it, instead of exposing their 
failings, and ridiculing their infirmities. If I consider 
myself one of the humblest servants of the Most High, 
it will delight me to promote his plans of benevolence, 
as far as he has put it in my power, by strengthening 
the feeble minded, supporting the weak, relieving the 
destitute, and instructing the ignorant. Christian 
charity, proceeding from humility, is the only benevo- 
lence which can be acceptable to God; for the motives 
which prompt to ostentatious charity are not such as will 
meet with his approbation and reward. 

Perhaps I may sometimes be tempted to say that this 
humility will abridge my powers of usefulness ; that if I 
entertained more confidence in myself, my efforts would be 
attended with better success ; and that, if all my endeavours 
must appear so imperfect in my own estimation, it is in 
vain to attempt to make exertions which will never 
repay me. Let me be assured that genuine humility 
will never suggest thoughts like these : it is indolence, 
or reluctance of some kind, that presents itself under 
the appearance of meekness, to deceive me. Let me be 
convinced that the dignity of our holy religion is suffi- 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 4T 

cient to support me, and make my exertions available. 
Let me remember that it will not be what I have 
achieved, but what I have endeavoured, which will be 
considered by my final Judge. Let me in all doubts 
and perplexities turn to contemplate the character of 
Jesus, who, perfect as he was, blended the meekness 
well becoming the frailest of his followers, with a 
dignity which proclaimed him the beloved Son of God. 
Let me endeavour in youth, in age, in poverty or riches, 
in joy or sorrow, to be like him, meek and lowly of 
heart, that I may find rest to my soul ! 



48 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

PRAYER. 

WEDNESDAY MORJYLYG. 

O thou all-righteous God ! holy and just ! who can 
appear before thee without sin ? who can deserve thy 
favour ? But, blessed be thy goodness, thou hast 
promised to accept the humble, imperfect efforts of thy 
creatures to please thee. Thou hast made them frail; 
and knowing their frame, thou mercifully forgivest 
their weakness, and pardonest their errors, if they seek 
to improve in holiness. I have too often sinned against 
thee, and merited thy displeasure ; and thou dost still 
continue me in existence, and in the enjoyment of 
numberless mercies. O Lord ! may I not presume upon 
thy goodness, and think, because thou dost bless me, 
that I am worthy of thy blessing. May I contemplate 
the perfection of the Christian character which I must 
strive to attain ; and, the more I contemplate it, the 
greater be my diligence, and the more humble my self- 
approval. May my soul not be elated by the conquest 
of one passion, the attainment of one virtue, or a partial 
knowledge of thy will ; but, when pride or vanity arises 
in my heart, may I reflect, with shame and contrition, 
on my own unworthiness, and remember that in this 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 49 

imperfect state I can never, by my own merits, deserve the 
eternal happiness which thou hast, of thy free grace, 
promised to those who, by patient continuance in well 
doing, seek for glory, honour, and immortality. May I, 
in the season of youth, devote my powers, in all their 
vigour, to thy service ; and, as my understanding ripens, 
may my piety also increase; that, if my life be prolonged 
to old age, when the things of this world lose their 
value, and earthly pleasures no longer charm, I may have 
in store hopes and delights which ever outweigh all that 
earth can give. As I advance towards the grave, may I 
fix my view on the glorious prospect beyond, which thou 
hast graciously revealed to man, to cheer him in trial 
and temptation, and to encourage him to strive unto the 
end. If I give my youth unto thee, do thou support me 
in age, in sickness, and in sorrow, and may my whole 
dependence be on thee. May I not fear the hour of 
death, knowing that thou wilt be with me ; and when I 
appear before thy throne, may my sins be pardoned, and 
my unworthy endeavours accepted ; and may I, by thy 
grace, be permitted to join the happy number of the 
spirits of the just made perfect, who continually sing 
praises round thy throne. 

Now unto thee, the King eternal, immortal, invisible, 
who dwellest in light inaccessible, whom no man hath 

D 



50 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

seen, or can see, be glory, honour, and praise, for 
ever. Amen. 



REFLECTION 



WEDNESDAY EVEJSWG. 



" if any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his 
tongue, that man's religion is vain." James i. 26. 

" Bringing every thought into subjection to the obedience of Christ." 
2 Cor. x. 5. 



I have often contemplated the character of Jesus 
Christ ; and the sentiment which always recurs on 
the contemplation is that of admiration of the perfect 
consistency of the whole. Virtues which some think 
incompatible with each other, there subsist in beautiful 
harmony. His meekness is consistent with his holy 
dignity, his forbearance with his indignation against 
vice, his exalted holiness with perfect sympathy for his 
species, his acute sensibility for the sufferings of all 
men, with perfect trust in God. Self-control could be 
the only means by which he could so subdue his 
inclinations, balance his affections, make the lesser 
virtues subservient to the greater, as to form that 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 51 

Christian character which ought to be a model to all 
his followers as long as the world endures, and which 
must ever claim their admiration, reverence, gratitude, 
and love. 

It must be my endeavour continually to approach to 
the perfection of this noble character ; and, to the 
attainment of this end, self-command is one of the most 
necessary requisites. If I reflect on my conduct, and 
try to discover wherein I differ so much from the pattern 
I ought to imitate, I shall find that I often indulge anger 
which I afterwards sincerely regret, that I say many 
things which I would gladly retract, and, above all, that 
I suffer my thoughts to wander till I have lost all autho- 
rity over them. As long as my mind is not within my 
own power, it is in vain to think of bringing it under 
religious discipline. It is in vain to fix my standard of 
right, and to wish to act up to it, while the means which 
I must employ are not under my own control. I must 
first gain authority over the passions I wish to subdue, 
the tongue I mean to rule, and the thoughts I desire to 
govern. 

Being convinced of the danger of uncontroled license 
of speech, let me be swift to hear, slow to speak ; let me 
not be too anxious to declare my own opinions till time 
may have matured them, and corrected the errors into 



52 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

which inexperience may have led me. Let me not 
indulge in exposing the faults of others ; but, where they 
are so glaring as to force observation, let them serve as a 
warning to myself, but not as a subject of conversation, 
except in those very few instances, when the warning 
may be of use to others. I perceive that it is not always 
right to speak the whole of what I feel and think ; but 
much more wrong is it to give, as my own, opinions 
which I have never examined, and of the good or bad 
tendency of which I am therefore ignorant, but for the 
consequences of which I make myself responsible by 
promulgating them. Many young persons are led into 
this more than error — this sin — by the love of talking ; 
but vanity has often a large share in it also, by prompting 
them to display an imagined acuteness of reasoning or 
talent in argument. 

This leads me to consider the necessity of obtaining 
control over the thoughts. If I could compute the 
time which has been employed in suffering my thoughts 
to dwell on the faults of others, on past circum- 
stances so trifling as to deserve only to be forgotten, 
on future events which may never take place, on hopes 
and fears without foundation, on plans which have never 
been executed, on resolutions which have been broken as 
often as formed, and even on trifles which would be inno- 
cent, if any thing could be innocent which contributes to 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 53 

waste of thought, I should be shocked that so large a 
portion of the day in which only I can work, had been 
lost, and worse than lost. This evil is to be remedied by 
constant care, by strong resolution, and especially by 
frequent and steady self-examination. When a good train 
of thought is begun, I must be careful to keep my atten- 
tion fixed upon it till I have followed it to the end, with- 
out turning aside for the sake of worthless trifles. I must 
strive to blend the feeling of duty with every other. In 
moments of leisure it must be my chief subject of medita- 
tion : in the busiest and gayest hours the same idea 
should be frequently dwelt upon, till it becomes so asso- 
ciated with my occupations and pleasures of every kind, 
that they shall introduce good thoughts instead of banish- 
ing them, shall awaken the conscience instead of deaden- 
ing it. Thus, while engaged in the pursuit of knowledge, 
I shall apply diligently ; while busied with active duties, 
my whole mind will be given to the performance of 
them. 

When I have entered into communion with my Maker, 
let my whole soul be absorbed in devotion, that no wan- 
dering thoughts may bring in the things of the world to 
intrude on the privacy which should be given to him 
alone ; that I may not mock him with the worship of the 
lips, while my heart is far from him : that I may not give 
my soul in bondage to the world, while I ought to be 



54 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

serving him in spirit and in truth. The absence of the 
mind in the services of religion is one of the most danger- 
ous consequences of want of command over the thoughts ; 
a consequence which will fall heavily upon me, if I am 
not on my guard ; for it is an evil almost past cure, when 
it has been long encouraged. Let me then strive without 
ceasing to acquire the important habit of self-government, 
without which all virtuous wishes and desires will be 
ineffectual and vain. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 55 



PRAYER. 

WEDNESDAY EVENING. 

Great and ever blessed God, how glorious is thy 
name, and how adorable are thy perfections ! I cannot 
comprehend thy nature ; for what mortal creature can 
know the eternal God r who can find out the Almighty 
to perfection ? Thou hast existed for ever; and of thy 
being there shall be no end : from everlasting to ever- 
lasting thou art God. Great as thou art, though heaven 
is thy throne, though infinite space is thy habitation., 
thou dost not disdain to protect and sustain the meanest 
of thy creatures. Though angels that excel in strength 
are thy servants, though the mighty sun obeyeth thy 
command, though all that is vast and wonderful is thine, 
thou dost care for all things that thou hast made ; and 
not even a sparrow falleth to the ground without thy 
will. Thou hast invited man, sinful man, who diso- 
beyeth and forgetteth thee, to draw near unto thee, to 
pour out his soul before thee in sorrow for sin : and, 
like a tender father, who pitieth his children, thou dost 
pity and pardon him, when he repenteth of the evil 
which he hath done. O Lord ! I would partake of thy 



50 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

grace. I acknowledge with shame that I have displeased 
thee. I have done that which I ought not to have done, 
and have left undone that which I ought to have done. 
I have followed my own evil inclinations, rather than 
thy will. Thou hast said, "Give me thy heart;" but I 
have given my heart too much to the things of the 
world, and have not cherished holy desires, and heavenly 
hopes. O Lord! teach me thy way; teach me to please 
thee better, and to devote myself to thy service. May I 
contemplate thy attributes, till I strive in some measure 
to be perfect as thou art perfect. May I be a faithful 
follower of the Captain of our salvation : may I submit 
myself to his guidance, that I may pass safely and peace- 
fully through the storms of sorrow, the snares of sin, 
and the dark valley of the shadow of death. Though 
his form ts no more seen on earth, may the voice of 
exhortation, of encouragement, and of love, which 
still addresseth our hearts in his holy Gospel, never 
cease to be my instructor in thy will, till the end of all 
things, when I shall appear before thee. O may I find 
mercy in that awful hour, and be permitted, through thy 
grace, to join those virtuous and happy spirits, who for 
ever dwell with thee ! 

Merciful Father ! accept of my humble thanksgivings 
for the blessings which have marked the day which is 
past ; and may thy goodness protect me during the hours 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 57 

of darkness. May I lie down, and sleep, and wake in 
peace, because thou sustahfest me; and may my first 
thoughts be devoted unto thee, my guardian and almighty 
Friend ! 

Bestow thy blessing, I beseech thee, on all thy children 
of mankind. Do thou reclaim the wicked, comfort the 
afflicted, and permit all to rejoice in the light of thy gospel. 

I ask all, in the name, and as the disciple, of thy son, 
Jesus Christ, through whom I would ascribe unto thee all 
glory, honour, and praise, for ever. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 



THURSDAY MORNING. 



' His tender mercies are over all his works." Psalm cxlv. 9. 

: In this was manifested the love of God towards us, because that God 

sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live 

through him." 1 John iv. 9. 

I have again been preserved from whatever dangers 
have beset me, and am once more permitted to enjoy the 
d5 



58 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

return of day, with its occupations and pleasures. What 
better season can I find, m which to contemplate the 
goodness of God ? How better than when rejoicing in his 
mercy, call to grateful remembrance the giver of every 
good and every perfect gift ? Though his blessings are 
more in number than the sand, though no memory can 
retain them all, and though no tongue can count them, 
yet it is good to think of them, and thus to make the 
heart overflow with gratitude. 

His bounty is without limits : he blesseth each and all 
of his creatures, first by granting them existence, and 
afterwards by sustaining it. How great was his goodness 
in giving life to such countless multitudes of beings, and 
in making that existence happy ! How wisely and bene- 
volently hath he suited them one to another, so that they 
should supply their mutual wants, and contribute to their 
mutual enjoyment I Man resembles the creatures below 
him in the possession of these blessings ; but he is like- 
wise gifted with a mind, in some measure capable of 
understanding and appreciating the perfections of his 
Maker ; a mind formed, not like the body, to live its day 
of enjoyment and then perish, but to endure for ever. 
God has also granted to man the knowledge which is able 
to make him wise unto salvation, the knowledge of a 
future state of happiness, and of the means of entering 
into it. These are the inestimable blessings which he 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 59 

has granted to his creatures at large. Now let me 
consider what I individually owe to his goodness. 

When I first entered the world, I was a helpless 
infant, entirely dependent on the care of others for 
the continuance of existence. God had provided for 
it by implanting strong parental affection in the hearts 
of those to whom he consigned me, and who were 
prompted by that affection to guard me from danger. 
to nourish me with convenient food, to clothe me, to 
nurse me in sickness, to watch continually for my good, 
when one moment's intermission of care, one single 
instance of forgetfulness, might have been fatal to me. 
When I had advanced a stage in existence, when the 
first dawnings of mind appeared, when I began to claim 
a place in the ranks of rational beings, my parents, 
appointed by God to the task, assisted to unfold my 
faculties, carefully tended my growing reason, watered 
the young plant with the dews of instruction, and 
fostered it with the sunshine of parental love. By the 
care of my heavenly Father I was preserved in the most 
helpless period of my life, and his care did not then 
cease. By that tender care has my body been preserved 
in health, and my mind, which he endowed with such 
various powers, also been provided for. My desire of 
knowledge has been gratified by stores of wisdom being 
placed in my power: my benevolent affections have 



60 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

found objects on which to exercise themselves; for 
I am surrounded by those whom I love, and who 
love me : my reason has found employment in con- 
templating those works of God by which I am 
encompassed, and my imagination, in striving to gain 
some knowledge of those which are in part beyond 
my reach. There is exercise for memory, in recalling, 
as I am now doing, the past mercies of my God ; and 
for hope, in joyfully looking for a future renewal of 
them. And for those lofty and sublime affections, 
which can find no fit object on earth ; for that adora- 
tion of perfection, that aspiring after something nobler 
and better than is to be found among men, there 
is an object, higher than imagination can soar, more 
sublime than the utmost stretch of reason can com- 
prehend, more perfect than the heart of man can 
conceive, deserving more love than my warmest 
affection can offer — God, as revealed in his word. 
By this blessed revelation, I am enabled to enjoy yet 
more my earthly portion of happiness, and to lay up 
for myself treasures which shall endure when time 
shall be no more. By this blessed revelation, mortal 
life increases in importance, being declared a state of 
preparation for an eternal existence. By this blessed 
revelation, I am furnished with a perfect example of 
holiness, by imitating which, I may obtain the inesti- 
mable rewards promised to the righteous. By this 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 61 

blessed revelation, sorrow and death, otherwise to be 
so much dreaded, take their place among the number 
of mercies with which I am favoured ; the one prompt- 
ing me to seek after a better country, that is, an 
heavenly; and the other being the entrance through 
which I may gain admittance into that better country. 
By this blessed revelation, I learn that if I pass 
through life, its trials of prosperity and adversity, its 
snares, temptations, and dangers, taking God's word 
for my guide and his will for my law, I shall dwell for 
ever in his presence, continually in a state of improve- 
ment, continually approximating to the divine nature, 
continually increasing my capacities for enjoyment, by 
gratifying my noblest desires. 

Blessed be God, for his unspeakable mercy in granting 
such a revelation ! O may I never forget the gratitude 
which I owe to his love ! Let me fulfil his gracious 
intentions, which would make me happy for ever. 
Let me glorify the name of the giver of all good, by 
an implicit obedience to his word, and by striving 
myself, and leading others to seek for that immortality 
which is the crowning gift of his mercy. Though all 
other blessings were withdrawn, though life and the 
promise of immortality alone remained, yet should my 
grateful praises ascend to his throne, for his undeserved 



62 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES, 

goodness; and yet would the best services a mortal 
creature can pay, be owing to my God. 

Let me now kneel before him, and offer him the 
thanksgivings of a heart penetrated with a sense of his 
mercy, and humbly desiring to become worthy of his 
favour. 



PRAYER. 

THURSDAY MORJVIJVG. 

O God of all mercy 1 whose goodness filleth the whole 
earth, who hast created all that exists, how inexhaustible 
is thy bounty, how unwearied thy benevolence! The 
sun which thou hast placed on high to rule the day, 
and the moon to shine by night, the stars also 
which thou hast ordained, show forth thy praise. 
The earth, with her mountains and valleys, her forests 
and rivers, and all else that thy hand hath made, praiseth 
thee. Thou givest the seed-time and harvest, when 
thou scatterest the blessings of plenty, and the little 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 63 

hills rejoice on every side. Thou also givest the rain 
and hail, snow and vapour, and stormy winds, fulfilling 
thy word, that the stores of the earth may be preserved, 
and that when the spring returneth, she may bring 
forth her fruits again abundantly, and make glad the 
heart of man. Thou givest the light of day, that thy 
creatures may enjoy all these things ; and thou hast 
ordained night, that they may obtain refreshment and 
repose, under thy guardian care. How innumerable are 
the beings that taste of thy bounty ! The birds of the 
air, the fishes of the sea, and all that passeth through the 
paths of the seas, the beasts and creeping things that 
dwell upon the earth, and Man, whom thou hast made a 
little lower than the angels, all wait upon thee, and thou 
givest them their meat in due season; thou openest 
thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living 
thing. 

But to thy rational creatures thou art most plenteous 
in mercy. Thou teachest them to know thee, and how 
to please thee ; thou hast offered to conduct them to a 
better life even than this : and when they ungrate- 
fully forget thee, snd disobey thy commands, thou dost 
mercifully forgive them, and receive them to thy favour, 
if they repent and return to thy ways. O may I never 
stray ! May the love which thy goodness inspires keep 
me in thy fear, and lead me in peace and thankfulness to 



64 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

surrender my whole heart unto thee. May I indulge no 
affections which are incompatible with love to thee ; 
may I obey no command but thine, may I indulge no 
inclinations which are impure in thy sight. 

Hear my prayer, O Lord ! which I offer with a sincere 
and thankful heart. Grant me, in this world, the 
knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come, 
life everlasting. To thee be all honour and praise for 
ever. Amen. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 65 



REFLECTION. 

THURSDAY EVENING. 

" Judge not, that ye be not judged." Matt. vii. 1. 

" But why dost thou judge thy brother ? Or why dost thou set at nought 

thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of 

Christ." Rom. xiv. 10. 

When I exercise the duty of self-examination, how 
difficult do I find it to employ my whole mind in the act ; 
how unwilling am I to blame my own faults, and how 
ready to exalt my own virtues ! Or if I cannot acquit 
myself of blame, how great is my inclination to palliate 
what is wrong, how superficial my examination into 
motives ! But very different is my judgment on the con- 
duct of others. Whether I am called on to judge them or 
not, I am too ready to ascribe bad motives, and to put 
the worst construction on actions of which it is not in my 
power to judge But I need only consider how often my 
own actions have been misinterpreted, to be assured that 
the power of judging is possessed by few. W x ould that as 
few possessed the inclination ! Perhaps nothing is more 



66 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

difficult to comprehend, few things are more inaccessible 
to examination, than the human mind. None but those 
who have deeply studied it can be aware of its intricacy. 
Few can search it to the bottom ; and those few modestly 
shrink from the task of exploring the minds of other men, 
finding it difficult enough to obtain any accurate know- 
ledge of their own. They know how many motives often 
combine to prompt to an action; and who but the 
Searcher of hearts shall say which are good, and which 
are evil? I have often been blamed for actions which 
proceeded from a right motive, and praised for good 
qualities, which constitution, early education, or other 
circumstances, have made easy in the exercise, and which 
therefore merit little commendation. If the judgment of 
others is thus imperfect with respect to myself, is it not 
probable that mine will be likewise mistaken ? 

If I did possess the power of judging others, what right 
have I to do it ? Even if I could see into their minds, 
discern the intricate workings of their hearts, feel the 
influence of circumstances as they do, be subject to the 
same temptations, and thus be enabled to judge, how 
should I be authorized to do so ? Is there any command 
which bids us pry into each other's actions, and instead 
of endeavouring to reclaim the sinner, or to improve the 
faulty, confirm them in their evil habits by exposing 
them, and thus blunting the edge of shame ? Hath not 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 6j 

God rather said, by the mouth of his servants, " Thou 
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself :" " Love worketh 
no ill to his neighbour :" " Be kindly affectioned one to 
another, with brotherly love ?" Hath he not also threat- 
ened punishment to " backbiters," and those " full of 
malignity ?" And surely it is malignity, instead of con- 
sidering every man as a brother, to expose his sins to 
public observation, to exult, as it were, over his fallen 
virtue, and to impede his return to the right way, by 
setting the hearts of men against him. 

Though I may not have reason to accuse myself of this 
sin in so great a degree as this, have I not practised it 
under an appearance less revolting ? Do I not sometimes 
make the faults or infirmities of my neighbour the subject 
of my conversation ? Do not blemishes occasioned by 
defective education, or singularities caused by circum- 
stances of which I know nothing, sometimes afford sub- 
jects for invective, or at least for ridicule ? And how do I 
know that, by so doing, I am not worthy of greater blame 
than those I am thus injuring ? I certainly know that I 
am not yielding obedience to the commandment of Jesus, 
to love one another. I am not exercising that spirit of 
forgiveness, which I daily pray may be exercised towards 
myself. I am not doing to others as I would they should 
do unto me. 



68 ' DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

How should compassion be exerted if not on those who 
are subject to the greatest of evils — Sin ? I am ready to 
compassionate the sorrowful, to assist and relieve them if 
possible, and at least to grieve with them. Similar should 
be my feelings towards those who are suffering under the 
tyranny of sin. I should warn them of guilt and danger. 
I should by reproof, by exhortation, by persuasion, by 
every means in my power, recall the sinner from the error 
of his ways. I should hold out a friendly hand to guide 
and assist his feeble steps : or, where I am not able to do 
this, I should be silent concerning him, that I may at least 
throw no impediment in the way of his return. Such is 
the forbearance I should wish to be extended to myself, 
if I should ever stray : such then be my conduct to others. 
Let me remember how the holy Jesus, the Son of God, 
pardoned and encouraged the sinful on repentance ; how 
he won them back to virtue, by first mildly rebuking 
their sins, and afterwards remembering them no more. 
Let me keep in mind the noble apostle's declaration, 
that he was all things to all men; that, by making 
allowance for their prejudices, by overlooking their 
weaknesses, and not exposing their errors, he might by 
all means save some. Let these be my examples ; as in 
all other things, so in this. Christian Charity exhorts 
me to it .- that Charity described by the apostle, over 
whose heart she exerted such influence. Charity suf- 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 69 

fereth long, and is kind. Unprovoked by injuries, 
envying not the prosperity of the wicked, she silently 
walks the earth, by gentleness overcoming evil, pouring 
the balm of comfort into the repentant heart, whispering 
peace in the mourner's ear, drawing a veil over sin, 
thinking no evil, rejoicing not in inquity, but rejoicing in 
the truth; vaunting not herself, and seeking not her 
own ; bearing all things, believing all things, hoping all 
things, enduring all things. O ! let me be her follower 
for ever ; for when prophecies shall fail, when tongues 
shall cease, when knowledge shall vanish away, when we 
shall no longer see through a glass darkly, but shall 
know even as we are known, Charity shall never fail. 
Then shall remain Faith, Hope, and Charity : but the 
greatest of these is Charity. 



70 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

PRAYER. 

THURSDAY EVEMJVG. 

O thou, who dwellest in the heavens, whose throne is 
among the stars, but who yet art the Father of all thy 
creatures ! I would render unto thee the homage which 
is due from a weak and sinful creature, to that Being in 
whom all perfections unite. Hallowed be thy name, 
O Lord ! for thou only art holy ; blessed be thy name, 
for thou art love ; adored be thy name, for thou alone 
art infinitely great, and wise, and good. May the know- 
ledge of thy glorious perfections spread over the whole 
earth, that all men may bend in homage to thee, who 
hast created, and dost still preserve them in being. 
May all live in obedience to thy laws : may all acknow- 
ledge the authority of thy Gospel, that thy will may be 
done on earth, even as it is in heaven ; and that all may 
become joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, of that immorta- 
lity which thou hast promised to those who seek it. 

Bless and preserve, I beseech thee, myself and those 
to whom I am bound by the ties of kindred or love, and 
grant us all needful good. From sickness, from poverty. 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. *J Y 

from danger, and death, do thou deliver us ; for on thee 
only do we depend. In the hours of darkness, do thou 
watch over us; and may our first thoughts when we 
awake be of thee. Continue to us the blessings we 
already enjoy, but render us willing to resign them, if 
thou who didst bestow them, shouldst see fit to resume 
thy gifts. 

I acknowledge with deep sorrow that I have not 
been worthy of thy past goodness, but, merciful Father ! 
pardon my transgressions. Look with compassion on 
my frailty, and teach me, who am so erring, to forgive 
and pity those who may in any way have injured me. 
May I remember him who was despised and rejected of 
men, whose life was one of continual suffering from the 
wickedness of men, but who forgave their cruel injuries, 
and prayed for them with his last breath. 

May I strive to be compassionate and forgiving like 
him, and ever remember how much I need thy pardon 
for my numerous offences. Keep me, I beseech thee, 
from falling into the snares of sin. Strengthen me to 
overcome temptation, and to subdue all evil passions 
and inclinations. May I fear no evil but that of being 
unworthy of thy regard ; may I seek no good so earnestly 
as thy favour. May thy goodness and mercy follow me 
all the days of my life; and may I so approve myself 



J 



72 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

unto thee by my conduct, while in this state of pro- 
bation, that I may dwell with thee for ever. 

Great as thou art, O Lord ! thou wilt hear my 
supplications and thanksgivings, if they are .offered 
in spirit and in truth. Unto thee will my adoration 
be ever due, for thine is the kingdom, the power, and 
the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

FRIDAY MORMJVG. 

" If ye love me, ye mil keep my words." John xiv. 23. 

No one can read with attention the account which 
the Gospels present of the character of our Saviour, 
without feeling a high reverence for one who, in a 
mortal state, exhibited such a perfect example of 
holiness. But this reverence is very apt to lead men 
to forget the love they also owe to him, whose every 
act and word was prompted by the purest benevolence. 
Do I not find, when I read the New Testament, that 
while I feel astonishment and awe at the dignity of his 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 73 

character, I do not always bear in mind that my 
warmest affections ought to be interested in the narra- 
tive? In the Son of God, endowed with supernatural 
power, stilling the storm, subduing the elements to 
his will, and speaking the awful messages of God, do I 
remember the son of man, forgiving sins, pitying weak- 
nesses, weeping at the tomb of his friend, and affection- 
ately comforting those who were shortly to lose him ? 
In him who led captivity captive, and broke the bonds of 
death, do I remember him who bore our griefs, and 
carried our sorrows, who was smitten for our transgres- 
sions, and by whose stripes we are healed ? How many 
motives should prompt me to the indulgence of gratitude 
and love ! For me, as well as for my brethren of man- 
kind, did he lay down his life, that we might obtain the 
knowledge of his truth, and, by that means, life ever- 
lasting. By this benevolent sacrifice of all that he might 
have enjoyed on earth, I in common with millions more 
of my fellow-creatures, have the benefit of direction in 
difficulty, support under temptation, unfailing comfort in 
sorrow, a joy which, though I possessed all that the 
world could afford, would make the world's gifts worth- 
less in comparison, and a hope which in health, or in sick- 
ness, in life, or even in death, may enable me to possess 
my soul in peace, and to rejoice evermore. For his 
Gentile disciples of all countries, and in all ages, he 
offered up a benevolent prayer ; and surely if they seek, 



7^ DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

they shall obtain the blessings which he asked for them. 
If I feel grateful affection for those friends, who, by their 
care and kindness, have given me the means of improve- 
ment, of maintenance, and enjoyment, what love ought I 
not to feel for him, to whom, next to my Maker, I owe 
the most valuable of all possessions and privileges ! On 
earth he is no longer seen; but his voice still appeals to 
me in his gospel, to follow in his steps, to perfect myself 
by his example, and to fulfil his benevolent intentions, by 
being worthy of his love ! And shall he speak in vain ? 
Shall the good Shepherd, with the voice of persuasion 
and gentlenesss, offer to lead his flock to the green pas- 
tures and still waters, and shall the sheep not hear his 
voice, but go astray and be lost? O no ! let me rather 
yield to his guidance, and joyfully accept his protection : 
let me love him on earth, and bless his name, and then 
shall I be admitted to companionship with him in heaven, 
where he will welcome those who have followed him to 
that state of glory and happiness. Feeble as my powers 
may be, I can yet do something to further his gracious 
designs for the good of mankind. I may be able to cheer, 
with the light of heavenly truth, the mind darkened by 
guilt, error, or ignorance : I may be able, while relieving 
the afflicted, to point their view, in gratitude and confi- 
dence, to the giver of all good : I may lead some to the 
forgiveness of their sins by repentance : I may be a peace- 
maker between those whose angry passions had cherished 






DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 75 

discord : I may excite those who suffer, to patience ; 
those who fear or despond, to cheerful reliance on him 
who raiseth up all that be bowed down ; or at least I may 
glorify the gospel, by showing its fruits of love, joy, and 
peace, in my own character. If love, joy, and peace in 
believing, are the rewards of such conduct on earth, 
where we dwell in comparative darkness, what must be 
the bliss reserved for the virtuous in the manifest presence 
of him who created all men, and of him who was the 
means of leading them to life eternal, and who will 
reward with his love those who have been fellow-workers 
with him in promoting the happiness of mankind ! Let 
my fervent love and reverential obedience be ever given 
to him, whom, not having seen, I love ; in whom, though 
now I see him not, yet believing, I rejoice, with joy 
unspeakable and full of glory. 



76 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 



PRAYER. 

FRIDAY MORNING. 

O God, my heavenly Father, and my almighty Pro- 
tector I again, at the return of day, are my thanksgivings 
due unto thee for thy watchful care during the hours of 
darkness. I laid me down in peace and slept, for thou, 
O Lord, sustainedst me. I awake in health and vigour, 
and my voice shall ascend unto thee in praise, and my 
renewed powers shall be devoted to thy service. With- 
out thy protection I could not exist, surrounded as I am 
with dangers which I cannot avoid, and subject to evils 
which I cannot foresee. But I will fear no evils while thou 
art with me ; for thou art my shepherd, and I shall not want 
any good thing. While I dwell on earth, thou leadest me 
to the green pastures, and beside the still waters ; thou 
wilt support me in the dark valley of the shadow of death ; 
and, if I truly seek thee, thou wilt be in heaven my eter- 
nal portion and everlasting light. With these animating 
hopes and promises, I will diligently strive to keep my 
soul from the snares of sin ; and may thy grace be with 
me, to strengthen my virtuous resolutions, to invigorate 
my holy desires, and to render my heart a worthy temple 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. ?J 

for thee to dwell in. While I reflect with gratitude on 
the rewards thou hast promised to obedience, may the 
awful threatenings of the gospel against sin make a deep 
impression on my soul. May I welcome all thy dispen- 
sations which may lead me from guilt, however painful 
they may be. May I remember that thy chastenings are 
designed to render me more worthy of thy love : and may 
this reflection lead me to bow myself to the stroke of 
sorrow, with perfect acquiescence in thy will. In the 
present season of youth, while my body and mind are in 
all their vigour, may I above all things fear to displease 
thee. While I am entering on the gay scenes of a beau- 
tiful world, may the words of my mouth and the medita- 
tions of my heart be such as thou wilt approve ; and when 
these gay scenes no longer charm, when pain and sickness 
assail me, do thou, O Lord, support and cheer me unto 
the end. 

I offer these prayers for ail thy children of mankind, as 
for myself. May the same hopes, the same consolations, 
be the portion of all : may all acknowledge thee as the 
universal Father, and Jesus Christ as the messenger of 
good tidings, and by his exalted virtues worthy of our 
warmest love, unceasing gratitude, and reverential obedi- 
ence. 

Merciful Father ! I will trust in thy continued protec- 



78 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

tion ; and desire, now and for ever, to ascribe unto thee 
supreme honours and everlasting praises. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 



FRIDAY EVENING. 

" In my Father's house are many mansions : if it were not so, I would 
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you : and if I go and 
prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto 
myself, that where I am, there ye may be also." John xiv. 2, 3. 

" Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and 
night in his temple : and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell 
among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more ; 
neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb 
which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead 
them unto living fountains of waters : and God shall wipe away all 
tears from their eyes." Rev. vii. 15—17. 

It is natural for those who believe the promise of a 
future state of existence, to desire to learn as much as 
possible of what they are to expect in that state. They 
must wish to form some definite idea of the happiness to 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 79 

be enjoyed by the righteous, and the punishment to be 
inflicted on the sinful. In the holy volume which con- 
tains the promises of immortality, little is said which can 
satisfy this natural desire ; probably because the subject 
is too high for our comprehension, too vast for our ima- 
gination, while in this imperfect state of being. But it is 
right to meditate on the little information we can obtain, 
to familiarize our minds with the thoughts of heavenly 
things, that we may prevent their being fixed on the 
things of this world ; and because it is frequently neces- 
sary in times of temptation, when the exercise of duty is 
difficult, to call in the aid of future hopes and fears. 
Indeed it is difficult for men to avoid thinking on a sub- 
ject which is so nearly connected with every thing most 
important to them. Though they should be as careful as 
possible not to make their own interest, even the highest 
interest, a motive for the practice of virtue, yet it is 
necessary, at least in the beginning of the race, to think 
of the prize which is set before them, that if che feet 
should slide, if the strength should fail, if the virtuous 
efforts should be slackened, and heavenly ardour grow 
cold, the thoughts of the high reward promised to the 
righteous may inspire them with fresh vigour to press 
towards the mark. For this purpose there seems to be 
no reason why each one should not form what ideas are 
most agreeable to him, on the subject of the nature of the 
future happiness of the righteous, as long as his opinions 



80 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

are not inconsistent with scripture declarations concern- 
ing it. 

As by these declarations I learn that holiness is the 
only qualification which will admit me into those happy 
regions, and as I know that even on earth the pleasures 
arising from its exercise are greater and more enduring 
than any others, I must conclude that the happiness of 
immortality consists principally in the nobler and more 
unimpeded exercise of virtue, and especially in the full 
employment, in the manifest presence of God, of the 
highest affections with which man is endowed. Here, 
however heartfelt may be the reverence of him, however 
warm and pure the sentiments of devotion may be, 
however diligent may be the efforts to keep him in all 
the thoughts, yet the things of this world will some- 
times intrude to shut him from our view. But we are 
told that, in heaven, God will be an everlasting light 
unto his people ; that he shall be with them, and shall be 
their God ; that those who are one in Jesus, shall be one 
in him also. This must be the principal source of happi- 
ness ; happiness pure as his holiness, stable as his 
throne, eternal as himself. This happiness must include 
in it all arising from the exercise of virtue ; for none but 
the righteous can thus dwell with him, in whose sight 
the wicked shall not stand, or of him who died that he 
might redeem us from all iniquity, and who promised to 






DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 81 

his faithful followers that where he is, there they shall 
be also. O, what a transporting prospect to the believer, 
in the midst of toils, temptations, and dangers, to con- 
template that state where the dead, who die in the Lord, 
shall rest from their labours; where the wicked cease 
from troubling, and the weary are at rest ; where he 
who was tempted like unto us, will have subdued all 
evil, even death itself; for he shall put all things under 
his feet, shall stand at the right hand of God, and for 
ever receive the grateful love of those whom he hath 
rescued from the power of sin, and brought into that 
happy kingdom ! 

There faith shall be recompensed ; there hope shall 
give place to certainty; but there love shall find its 
noblest employment in communion with the spirits of 
the just, each increasing the happiness of the others, by 
unimpeded interchange of thought, by entire sympathy, 
by boundless love, resembling the delights of virtuous 
friendship on earth, but as much exceeding them as 
heaven is greater than earth. There may the desires of 
knowledge be gratified ; for then shall the veil be with- 
drawn which conceals from mortal eyes the mysteries of 
heaven ; then shall the dealings of God's providence be 
clearly revealed ; there shall we no longer know in part, 
but shall know even as we are known. There shall 
memory dwell with tender delight on the past scenes of 
e 5 



82 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

mortal life ; shall ejoice in past sufferings ; shall be 
grateful for past trials ; and anticipation shall look 
forward to endless ages of still increasing happiness, of 
still improving virtue, of still nearer approximation to 
the divine nature. With such transporting hopes and 
glorious promises to the righteous, however I may be 
exposed to earthly sorrow, I should possess my soul in 
patience, should yield myself up to the guidance of 
Religion, who will lead my feet into the way of peace, 
will roll away the clouds from the dark valley of the 
shadow of death, now visited by the day-spring from on 
high, and will disclose to my view the glories of that 
heavenly kingdom which I am called to inherit. 

I know not how soon I may be taken from my earthly 
pilgrimage ; how near may be my approach to the grave; 
but if prepared by the frequent contemplation of divine 
things, I shall be ready at any moment to quit my earthly 
abode, hoping that when the heavens and earth shall have 
been dissolved, when the glory of the sun, the glory of 
the moon, and the glory of the stars, shall have passed 
away ; when terrestrial shall have given way to celestial 
glory ; when the body that is sown in corruption, shall 
be raised in incorruption ; when that which is sown in 
dishonour, shall be raised in glory ; when that which is 
sown in weakness, shall be raised in power ; when that 
which is sown a natural body, shall be raised a spiritual 



DEVOTIONAL, EXERCISES. 83 

body; when death is swallowed up in victory ; I may join 
with an innumerable company of angels, with the general 
assembly and church of the first-born, with the spirits of 
just men made perfect, and with Jesus the Mediator of 
the New Covenant, in saying with one voice, i( Alleluia ! 
for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth." 



PRAYER. 

FRIDAY EVENING. 

O Lord God Almighty! to whom only honour and 
glory are due, may my humble tribute of thanks and 
praises be acceptable in thy sight. How continually 
renewed are thy mercies, and how unceasing thy care for 
thy earthly offspring ! Every morning I awake, blessed by 
thy bounty ; every evening I lay me down, and sleep in 
peace, guarded from fear, evil, and danger, by thy pro- 
tection. O may each day be spent in thy service ; and 
whenever I retire to rest, may it be with the peaceful con- 
sciousness of having advanced in the Christian course, 



84 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

and risen in thy favour. May I remember that each time 
when I address my prayers to thee, I have advanced 
nearer to the end of life, and to the hour of judgment : 
and may this remembrance quicken my diligence, and 
inspire me with fresh desires to work the work thou hast 
given me to do, while it is yet day, that, when the night 
of death shall overtake me, I may be prepared to await 
the awful judgment into which all my deeds shall be 
brought, whether they be good or whether they be evil. 
May I reflect continually on the duties I must perform. 
May my sense of thy presence, leading me to watchful- 
ness against evil, my respect, love, and charity to those 
who surround me, my diligent endeavours to improve in 
all useful acquirements, testify unto thee my sincere 
desire to become worthy of thy favour. Do thou, O 
Lord ! watch over me, I entreat thee ; pour into my mind 
the light of thy truth; encourage my virtuous endea- 
vours ; and enable me to avoid that which is evil. Thou 
knowest that I desire holiness above all things ; do thou 
then, I beseech thee, lead me to be holy like unto my 
blessed Saviour. May I repine at no means that thou 
mayst appoint for this end. If affliction shall weigh 
heavily upon me, may it be sanctified unto me by render- 
ing my heart purer and better. May I thus be prepared 
for that happy state, the glories of which it is good to 
contemplate. O may I be admitted into that everlasting 
kingdom. May I cherish love to thee and to my fellow- 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 85 

creatures, believing that the indulgence of these affec- 
tions will form my happiness in heaven. May my views 
ever be turned towards the end of life ; and may I watch, 
knowing not the day and the hour when I may be called 
out of this world. 

I humbly ask these things, O God ! trusting that thou 
wilt grant those which are good, and withhold those 
which will be hurtful : and, with full and cheering con- 
fidence in thy mercy, I ascribe unto thee all glory, honour, 
and praise, for ever. Amen, 



83 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 



REFLECTION. 

SATURDAY MORNING. 



u Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high- 
minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, 
who giveth us all things richly to enjoy." I. Tim. vi. 17. 

"Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all 
these things shall be added unto you." Matt. xiv. 33. 



How common is it for men to speak of the uncertainty 
of all worldly possessions and pleasures ; and indeed it 
would be difficult for them to avoid being convinced of 
this truth, while so many instances occur under the obser- 
vation of every one. Yet who would suppose, from the 
conduct of most men, that such is their conviction? 
Who would think that the same beings who eagerly 
strive to obtain wealth, pleasures, or worldly honours, 
were aware of their transitory nature ? Even those who 
seek after better things also, are liable to the same folly. 
Young as I am, I can perceive the instability of all that 
belongs to this world, and the necessity of providing 
for myself a future store of happiness, if I wish to enjoy 
it permanently. The young are very apt to rely on the 
continuance of present comforts; and to forget, because 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 87 

they now possess them, that they ever may feel their 
loss. But I have been warned against this delusion ; and, 
to impress the warning more forcibly on my mind, let 
me consider the value of these blessings, and the proba- 
bility of their continuance. 

Life itself is the greatest of all blessings, and the means 
by which we enjoy all others. It has been given to me 
with the hope of spending it happily here, and to all 
eternity. But how are these purposes to be answered ? 
Not by grasping the unsatisfactory pleasures which we 
must for ever relinquish with mortal life ; not by gratify- 
ing unworthy propensities, or forgetting the giver of life 
itself. He may in a moment deprive me of it: while, 
believing that I have much goods laid up for many years, 
that very day my life may be required of me. I ought 
therefore to make my life subservient to obtaining salva- 
tion ; and to be ready willingly to resign it, whenever 
its Author shall recall his gift. 

Health is not only an important possession in itself, 
but adds great value to most others. But what is more 
uncertain? What tenure is more precarious? Those 
whom I see one day in full health, revelling in all the 
enjoyments of a beautiful world, happy and gay, on the 
next are stretched on the bed of pain : the good finding 
peace in more stable pleasures ; the wicked seeking com- 



88 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

fort, and finding none. Let me mark the sunken eye, 
the faded cheek, the agonizing countenance, and remem- 
ber that, though the grass withereth, and the flower 
fadeth, the word of the Lord shall stand for ever ; and on 
that word, as on an unshaken rock, will I build my hope. 

Riches, we are told, " take to themselves wings, and fly 
away ;" and with them depart the luxuries of life, power, 
rank, the applause of the world, and also, in part, the 
more valuable pleasures of leisure, ease, and the means of 
doing good. Wealth is indeed valuable to those who 
estimate it properly ; but it is by no means necessary to 
happiness ; for we brought nothing into this world, and 
it is certain we can carry nothing out. It will be true 
wisdom, therefore, to make myself as independent as 
possible of the external things of life, to know how to 
abound, and to suffer need ; to learn, in whatever state I 
am, therewith to be content. However I may be situated, 
let me remember that they who will be rich fall into 
temptation and a snare ; for the love of money is the 
root of all evil, which those who covet after, err from the 
faith, and pierce themselves through with many sorrows. 

Fleeting and transitory as these things are, pleasures 
are to be found on earth, which may be cherished and 
enjoyed to the utmost ; as they are neither displeasing 
to God, nor liable to end in the grave. Such are the 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 89 

delights of virtuous friendship, of companionship with 
the wise and good, of obtaining knowledge, especially 
that which may make me wise unto salvation, and of 
the indulgence of the benevolent affections, which will 
all probably form a part of the happiness of the righteous 
hereafter. Let such be the objects of my care, as I pass 
through life, at the same time enjoying with thankful- 
ness and moderation the pleasures with which an 
indulgent Father may see fit to strew my path. Instead 
of prizing chiefly the mortal years, which are but as 
yesterday when it is past, as a watch in the night, as a 
sleep, as the grass which groweth up in the morning, in 
the evening is cut down and withereth, let me desire the 
life of which there shall be no end. Instead of the 
unsatisfactory pursuits of this world, let me seek after 
the fulness of joy which is in the presence of God, and 
the pleasures which are at his right hand for evermore. 
Instead of trusting in uncertain riches, let me lay up for 
myself a treasure in the heavens, which faileth not. 
Instead of unhallowed and tumultuous earthly joys, let 
me seek after the peace of God which passeth all under- 
standing, in which he will keep those who love him, 



90 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 



PRAYER. 

SATURDAY MORJVIJVG. 

God of my life, from whom I derive my being, and to 
whom therefore I owe all gratitude and praise, reverence 
and love, again do I approach thy presence with deep 
humility, but with strong confidence in thy continued 
mercy. Amidst the perils of the day, and the darkness 
of the night, thy strong arm shall be my protection : in 
gladness, thy love shall be my chief joy ; and in sorrow, 
I will put my trust in thee. I ask not for riches, 
honour, or any of the splendid gifts of this world ; for 
thou only knowest whether they are good for me ; but, 
shouldst thou see fit to bestow them, may they be used 
to glorify thee. If thou givest me wealth, may it be 
employed in alleviating the ills of poverty to the needy ; 
and, instead of seeking my own indulgence, may I re- 
member how the Lord Jesus said, " It is more blessed to 
give than to receive." If honour in this world should be 
mine, may I endeavour, with all the influence I possess, 
to lead men to think of thee, and to become faithful 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 91 



followers of thy son Jesus Christ. Whatever be my lot, 
may I lay up a treasure in the heavens that faileth not ; 
that no changes of mortal life may destroy my hopes of 
happiness. May the continual vicissitudes of life teach 
me to fix my desires only on thee, the Rock of Ages. 
May the instances of death, sickness, and poverty, which 
every where surround me, render me grateful that thou 
hast continued to grant me the blessings of life, health, 
food, raiment, and a habitation wherein to dwell; and 
that thou hast preserved to me the pleasures of intercourse 
with virtuous kindred and friends, and the means of 
improvement in piety and holiness. May I never forget 
that I must lose these blessings; that I, like all thy 
children of mankind, must descend into the tomb, and 
quit the busy scenes of life, to appear in judgment before 
thee, the all-righteous God. Oh! when that day shall 
arrive, may I commend my soul in peace unto thee, as 
unto a faithful Creator. May no doubts of thy tender 
mercy ever disturb my mind; may I repent with sincerity 
of all my transgressions, and put unfailing cc nadence in 
the promises which thou hast revealed by thy son Jesus 
Christ. By the example of him who, pure and holy him- 
self, pitied our sorrows, and compassionated our frailties, 
may I qualify myself for obtaining thy approbation : by 
his instructions may I uniformly regulate my conduct ; 
and in his name, and as his disciple, may I ever, with 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 



sincere humility and love, ascribe unto thee all honoui 
and praise, both now and for evermore. Amen. 



REFLECTION. 

SATURDAY EVENING . 

" The end of all things draweth near : be ye therefore sober, and 

watch unto prayer." I. Pet. iv. 7. 
" For what is your life ? It is even as a vapour, which appeareth for 

a little time, and then vanisheth away." James iv. 14. 

No reflection is more common than that life is short, 
and that time flies fast. The virtuous, the sinful, the rich, 
the poor, the humble and industrious, the proud and 
ambitious, all complain that the portion of time allotted 
to them is too short for the fulfilment of their schemes. 
But life is made long enough, and suited to its 
important work, by a wise God and indulgent Father. 
Scarcely any portion of time would satisfy the desires 
of the worldly man, who, the more schemes he plans, 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 93 

the more he becomes attached to the world, and unwil- 
ling to leave it. He may not have time to secure all the 
wealth, honours, and power, which he tries to grasp ; 
but the humble Christian, however short may be his 
term of existence, has time enough to secure the joys of 
a more enduring world. 

But, however sufficient the time appointed me on 
earth, for the obtaining of salvation, may be, if properly 
employed, it will be short indeed, if I am negligent of 
my duties and forgetful of my obligations. Another 
week has now elapsed ; a portion of time in which much 
may be done to improve the mind, and forward it on its 
Christian course. Have I properly improved this impor- 
tant portion of time? Whatever I have done, I might 
have done more. I am conscious of having wasted a 
part of it in unprofitable thoughts and discourse ; in too 
great attention to trifling circumstances, and in forget- 
fulness of my important destination. If the same time 
had been spent in obtaining useful knowledge, or in 
maturing by reflection the store already possessed; in 
meditating on the will of God, and thus enabling myself 
the better to perform it ; in censuring my own faults, 
instead of those of others; in raising my desires, and 
subduing my unworthy inclinations ; in making every 
circumstance, however small, conducive to my improve- 
ment ; how great would have been my progress, compared 



94 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

with what it has been ! Let me lose no more of a life, 
short indeed, but yet long enough for the work I have 
to do, if I employ its smaller as well as larger portions 
conscientiously. I am now at the most important period 
of life, when virtuous habits must be fixed, or it will be 
too late ; and therefore time, always valuable, is now 
peculiarly so; for the loss of time differs from most 
other losses, in the impossibility of retrieving it. Once 
gone, it is gone for ever. If I were spared to the latest 
possible hour of human existence, no length of life 
could make up for the loss of any of the valuable days 
of youthful activity. And who can tell that my period 
of life will be long ? Who can tell that I may not be 
called from this world in a few months, days, or even 
hours ? And how shall I appear before my Judge, if I 
have wasted the most valuable of the many talents he has 
consigned to my care ? If I do not diligently improve 
every hour, this must be my fearful reflection whenever I 
am about to leave this world. I know that no know- 
ledge or device is found in the grave; that, as I 
die, so I must appear before God ; and I ought 
already to have advanced far in that holiness which 
should enable me to present myself, as I am commanded, 
spotless and unrebukable in his sight. I have long been 
taught what is my duty to God, what he requires of me, 
and what I have to expect from him. Possessing this 
knowledge, and being favoured with so many means of 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 95 

improvement to myself and usefulness to others, let me 
not pass my days in the gratification of unworthy desires, 
which will soon cease to afford pleasure, and will leave 
behind nothing but regret and mortification. Let me 
rather yield the reasonable service of my powers to the 
God who gave them ; let me now, while it is in my power 
to form my tastes, and to institute good habits, have con- 
tinually in view the purpose for which I was created ; let 
me educate myself for that endless state of existence 
which is placed in my view ; let me encourage on earth 
the desires whose gratification will form my happiness in 
heaven. Let me in life strive to make every thought, 
word, and deed, an act of devotion, from the motives 
which influence me : while truly meek and humble, let 
my light so shine before men, that, seeing my good deeds, 
they may glorify their Father in heaven. Thus shall I 
pass through the changing scenes of life, whether pros- 
perous or adverse, possessing an inward peace which 
passeth all understanding, undisturbed by apprehension 
or remorse : thus shall I tranquilly await the stroke of 
death, prepared for its approach, whether it arrive early 
or late ; seeing no horrors in the darkness of the tomb, 
and not fearing to enter the eternal world which shall 
afterwards be revealed. 

Further than this it is not permitted for mortal view to 
penetrate into the mysteries of heaven : but I know that 



96 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISE3. 

happiness, greater than eye hath seen, or ear heard, or 
than it hath entered into the heart of man to conceive, is 
reserved for those who, by patient continuance in well 
doing, seek for glory, honour, and immortality. 



PRAYER. 

SATURDAY EVENING. 

O thou, great and glorious being ! in whom our life is, 
and whose are all our ways, thou art from everlasting to 
everlasting, and shalt never change. From thee I have 
derived my being, and unto thee, therefore, is the tribute 
of my adoration due. 

Once more have I been preserved during the week, and 
again am I permitted to look forward to the pleasures of 
the day of rest. I thank thee, O Lord, for all thy good- 
ness ; and especially that I have been blest with the glad 
tidings of salvation. By them am I enabled to surmount 
temptation, to endure sorrow with cheerfulness, to taste 
the delights of gratitude when in the enjoyment of pros- 
perity, and amidst all the changes of life to look forward 



DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 97 

to a state of uninterrupted happiness. As week after week 
of my mortal life passeth away, may I become more and 
more fitted for that eternal existence on which I must 
soon enter. May I waste none of the hours which thou 
hast given me to prepare for judgment : may I never 
forget that thou requirest me to become holy, just, and 
good; not loving the vain things of this world, but 
desiring chiefly to please and glorify thee. I know that 
all who diligently seek thee may find thy support and 
favour at all times on earth, and may dwell in thy mani- 
fest presence in heaven. O Lord ! enable me to prepare 
myself to appear before thee, whether I be taken early or 
late from my mortal pilgrimage. If but a short time yet 
remaineth to me, may I purify my heart, and exalt my 
affections, so that I may not fear to enter on another state 
of being. If many months and years are allotted me in 
this life, may I diligently labour, as long as I live, to 
please thee. May no long possession of worldly happi- 
ness make me unmindful of thee, the giver of all good; 
but may I be a worthy instrument of thy benevolence, in 
promoting the best interests of mankind. 

I pray for myself, and all whom I love, that thou wilt 
continue unto us the same gracious protection which 
hath hitherto guarded us from evil. May we sleep in 
peace this night, and arise in the morning prepared to 
spend the holy day so as to nourish and strengthen our 



93 DEVOTIONAL EXERCISES. 

hearts in all pious and benevolent dispositions. May we 
ever put our confidence in thee alone, the universal 
Father ; and may thy best blessings be the portion of all 
thy children of mankind. May the glad tidings of salva- 
tion be universally diffused, and gratefully received. May 
thy will at length be done on earth, as it is in heaven ; 
and when this world and the things of it shall have passed 
away, may the countless millions of beings, who by thy 
mercy shall have become heirs of eternal life, surround 
thy throne, praising thee, their Creator, God, and Father, 
for ever and ever. Amen. 



99 



A GUIDE 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES, 



Among the multitude of bible readers in this Christian 
country, it is a rare thing to meet with one who is well 
acquainted with the holy scriptures. There are many 
who can quote texts in support of their religious opinions ; 
many who can relate parables to children ; many who 
can instruct those around them in the moral teachings of 
the messengers of God ; and very many, no doubt, who 
can at any time call to mind passages which carry in them 
reproof of sin, encouragement to virtuous efforts, and 
consolation under sickness and sorrow. Many children 
learn out of the bible from day to day; their parents 
listen from week to week to what is read or expounded 
in places of worship ; and the aged are often seen poring 
over the holy book in the intervals of their daily employ- 



100 A GUIDE TO THE 

ments, and heard to repeat favourite passages out of it 
when eye-sight fails, or during sleepless portions of the 
night. Yet among all these there may be little real 
knowledge of the volume so much studied ; and that there 
actually is little knowledge is proved by the difficulty of 
finding any persons but those who have been bred to 
theology as a profession who can give any clear account 
of what the bible is, who wrote it, for what purpose the 
various parts were prepared, at what times they were 
written, what is the comparative value of different por- 
tions, what makes some passages obscure and others 
strange, and all extremely unlike any other book com- 
monly read. 

If the teachers of a large school in some place where 
Christianity had never been heard of, were anxious to 
provide instruction for their pupils, and thought that the 
Greeks were the wisest people that ever lived, and their 
books the most valuable that could be collected ; if they 
accordingly set about collecting all that they could get 
hold of that was written by Greeks, and for the sake of 
convenience bound up the whole in one volume, that 
volume would be somewhat like our bible. The most 
valuable part of it would be the history of the life and 
death of Socrates, accompanied by accounts of his lec- 
tures, and private teachings, and familiar conversations. 
There would be besides a pretty full account of his prin- 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 101 

cipal followers, and the letters they wrote on the subject 
of Socrates, and reports of their methods of learning 
during his life, and of teaching after his death. There 
would also be accounts of other instructors who had lived 
at various periods before him. There would be several 
histories of Greece in different ages, and in the different 
circumstances through which its inhabitants had passed ; 
at one time they might appear a nation of barbarians, at 
another of heroes and philosophers ; they would have one 
kind of government in one age, and another in another ; 
now they would appear as conquerors in war and princes 
in peace, and now overcome, and oppressed, and humbled. 
Mingled with these different histories, there would be 
poems, some long, some short ; epic poems, hymns, songs, 
and fables. They would contain traditions about the 
origin of the Grecian empire, narratives, some true and 
some fictitious, about good and bad men, triumphal verses 
to celebrate victories, and lamentations for defeat. Now, 
if the children in this school had such a book put into 
their hands, with no further explanation than that they 
were to study it diligently, and learn as much out of it as 
they could, they might read it all their lives, and get but 
a very imperfect notion of what it really was. They would 
not know what happened at one time and what at another, 
how many of the events related really took place, and 
where, and why. They might store their memories with 
beautiful tales, or take to heart much valuable instruc- 



102 A GUIDE TO THE 

tion, and follow the advice of Socrates as mucn as they 
could ; but they would be much perplexed at little things 
at every page, and might make tremendous mistakes 
about matters of more consequence, for want of informa- 
tion which ought to have been given them from the 
beginning, or which they should have been put in the 
way of finding for themselves. There would be little use 
in telling them that they might discover all they wanted 
to learn in the book itself, unless they were shown how. 
They would not know where to begin or how to proceed. 
But if any person should once give them a hint to try to 
find out how long Socrates lived, how many years in 
private, and how many as a public teacher ; if any one 
brought a map into the school, and pointed out the boun- 
daries of the Grecian empire in different ages, and where 
the various philosophers were born, and how far they 
travelled ; on what mountains armies were collected ; on 
what plains battles were fought ; if another teacher dis- 
played pictures of the temples where the philosophers 
taught, and the gardens where they reposed themselves ; 
if another instructed the pupils how to distinguish poetry 
from prose, fable from history ; if another produced 
annals of different countries in order to compare dates 
and events, and find out how long the Grecian empire 
lasted, — the whole school would be in the way to under- 
stand what they were studying, to keep clear of mistakes, 
and to profit duly by the contents of each portion of the 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 103 

volume. Many who had become tired of hearing parti- 
cular parts read very often, would now find that there 
was much more in these very parts than they had been 
aware of. Many who had found it a dull duty to spend 
half an hour a day in reading this book, beginning any 
where as it might happen to open, would now enjoy hour 
after hour of study; comparing one part with another 
when they had a point to make out, finding some beauti- 
ful meaning in what had before been a mere jumble of 
words ; and perceiving the reasonableness of many instruc- 
tions which had once appeared wrong or absurd. 

The case of our bible readers is very like that of the 
pupils of this supposed school ; but worse, inasmuch as 
that which they lose is of greater value than any thing 
which may be overlooked in Grecian philosophy or 
morals. Moreover, the bible readers are less in the way of 
discovering their own confusion of ideas and consequent 
ignorance, from there being a large mixture of supersti- 
tion in that ignorance. The more important the study is 
to them, and the more sacred its subject, the less willing 
are they to regard it in the same light with other studies, 
and the greater is their fear of deviating from old 
methods of reading the scriptures. All, however, who 
are discontented with their present state of bible know- 
ledge, and distressed by their growing distaste to the 
study, may be comforted by the consideration that the 



104 A GUIDE TO THE 

peculiar sanctity of the scriptures affords a reason why 
they should be better instead of worse understood than 
x)ther writings ; and that if true and especially appointed 
for our instruction, they cannot but be more honoured 
and beloved, the more freely they are used and the more 
carefully they are investigated. If this were generally 
considered, if more would cry out for direction in study- 
ing the bible, instead of privately grieving over their 
dislike of it; if children were encouraged to enquire 
about any thing which appears strange to them; if, 
instead of reading a chapter daily, and seldom more (as 
if the practice were to operate like a charm) the hearty 
study of the volume were made a regular employment, 
our young people would understand the bible better at 
twenty years of age than it is now commonly understood 
at sixty : and this, not only in the historical and the 
prophetical and less obvious portions, but in those pre- 
ceptive parts which are familiar to every one's ear, and 
supposed to be fully comprehended and taken to heart 
by all good Christians. 

The Sermon on the Mount, for instance. Children 
are apt to think that they have learned the whole of it by 
the time they are twelve years old; and its language 
becomes so familiar as to make little impression after 
that time. But some who have held this notion as 
children, have found at thirty years old that they are only 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 105 

beginning to comprehend the full meaning of that which 
is taught in our Sunday schools, and which is indeed 
food for infant piety, while it may go on to sustain that 
which is enlarged to the utmost by knowledge and expe- 
rience. The child may comprehend what meekness, 
mercy, purity and peacefulness are, and how certainly 
they are blessed ; but not many of mature age are exactly 
aware what is meant by the kingdom of heaven, by inhe- 
riting the earth, by being called the children of God. 
It requires much study to be satisfied what particular value 
there is in these promises, and why these virtues were 
selected and placed in their present arrangement by 
Jesus. To understand even what is meant by the com- 
parisons of salt, of lighted candles, of different kinds of 
judgments, of oaths, of raiment, of modes of alms- 
giving and of prayer, and many others, requires consi- 
derable knowledge of Jewish customs, and of the natural 
productions of the country where this sermon was 
delivered. A child's, or other ignorant person's ideas of 
the purpose of Christ's instructions in this discourse, 
can scarcely fail of being generally correct, and its moral 
teachings will therefore be very valuable ; but over the 
whole there will be a strangeness and mystery which 
do not belong to the subject, being wholly the product 
of the reader's own ignorance. When he has learned 
that there are salt-rocks in Judea, of which the parts 
that are exposed to the sun lose their saltness and 
f2 



106 A GUIDE TO THE 

become useless, he will understand why the peculiar 
people were compared to this insipid salt, after they had 
parted with the pure religion with which they were 
appointed to season the world from corruption. When 
he has fully learned what is the Law, in distinction from 
the Gospel, he will understand how Jesus came to fulfil 
the law, and why he set up precepts of his own in dis- 
tinction from those " of old time." When he has 
learned how charity was bestowed in Jerusalem, and 
where the alms-chest stood, there will be no mystery 
in what is said of a trumpet, and the synagogue, and the 
left hand not knowing what the right hand does. There 
will also seem nothing strange in the allusions to prayer 
in the streets, to anointing the head, and to throwing 
jewels before swine. He will know in what kind of 
privacy men were recommended to pray, and why the 
lilies of the field were thought to be more gloriously 
arrayed than Solomon, and how it was that rain as well as 
winds proved destructive to houses. Groups of persons, 
glimpses of landscape will rise up before his mind's eye 
as he reads, and his admiration of the beauty of the dis- 
course will grow into enthusiasm before he reaches its 
close. If, moreover, he has informed himself of the con- 
dition of society at the time when Christ came ; if he 
knows how Jews and Gentiles were circumstanced with 
respect to each other before and after that period, he 
will discern a wisdom and divine benevolence in this 






STUDY OP THE SCRIPTURES. 107 

discourse which will affect him with a higher awe than 
springs out of mystery ; and the somewhat painful feeling 
of strangeness will give place to the delights of clear and 
vivid perception. 

Thus would it be with innumerable other passages of 
the sacred writings. Not that deep and extensive study 
would be required for every one. If this were necessary, 
few could enjoy them as we would fain have every one 
enjoy them. On the contrary, one piece of information 
serves as a key to unlock a great number of mysteries. 
The knowledge which is necessary to a full understand- 
ing of the Sermon on the Mount will render intelligible 
almost the whole of what now confuses a large propor- 
tion of readers, and alarms others. Any portion of that 
knowledge will explain something in every book of 
scripture ; and it is knowledge which is within the reach 
of all, if they were but aware of it. 

" But how," enquires one and another, " are we to get 
at this knowledge ? We do not know how to begin. Our 
notions of the whole bible are confused. We have gone 
backwards and forwards from the New to the Old Testa- 
ment, and from the Old to the New, till the whole, 
except the life of Christ, is perplexed and mysterious. 
We understand nothing of the Prophets, and we do not 
know the Epistles from one another. What must we 



108 A GUIDE TO THE 

learn first? and where must we look for what we 
want ?" 

The first thing to be learned is what the bible is ; and 
this may be ascertained from the bible itself, together 
with a few helps which are within almost ^every body's 
reach. 

It will be seen that the bible, with the exception of a 
few chapters at the beginning of Genesis, relates to a 
particular nation, the Jews, who took their rise from 
Abraham. The brief history from the Creation to the 
time of Abraham is a mere introduction to the account 
of the peculiar people who sprang from him. The place 
of their original abode, the place of their bondage in the 
time of Moses, the scene of their wanderings under his 
direction, of their conquests under his successors, and of 
their settlement till their final dispersion, may be traced 
upon the map, and ought to be well fixed in the me- 
mory, that the impression of reality may be retained 
amidst all that is afterwards read. The next step is to 
discover what the books of the bible are, and who wrote 
them. The historical ones may be first picked out ; and 
if read with the same kind of attention as other histories, 
they will be found nearly as plain, and marvellously inte- 
resting. It is only because they are read piece-meal and 
confusedly that they are ever felt to be otherwise. It 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 109 

will be found easy to follow the course of events; and, 
if not to count the years, to calculate without much 
danger of mistake, how the nation proceeded from age 
to age ; and how long its different forms of government 
lasted; and thus to know by reference to histories of 
other nations what the rest of the world was doing at 
the same time. Instead of being unable to say whether 
Noah or Esau was most of a Jew, instead of being apt to 
suppose that all the events of the Old Testament hap- 
pened close together, and those of the New at some 
unknown distant time, the reader will be able to mark 
out the striking periods of the narrative, and to measure 
their distances with more or less of accuracy. In the 
history, he will find mention of the authors of the other 
books ; and will therefore be able to distinguish them by 
their various characters, and to refer them to their proper 
periods. It has often happened that children who had 
grown tired of the well-known story of Ruth, have begun 
to take a new interest in her when they found out that 
she was the great-grandmother of David. Very little 
mystery, but much more interest will belong to the 
Psalms when they are read in connexion with the narra- 
tive of the events to which they relate. It has strangely 
startled many unreflecting readers to find psalms that 
they knew by heart in the middle of the books of Samuel ; 
and no less to discover what an active part some of the 
prophets took in the events of their times ; how they 



110 A GUIDE TO THE 

lived in courts, and moved among the people, and came 
out into life like real men, instead of being shrouded in 
the obscurity of their own prophecies. 

The nature of the collection of books being thus dis- 
covered in the course of perusal, the design of the whole 
will be easily apprehended. It will be seen that they 
constitute a record of revealed religion, — the poetry no 
less than the history, — the Old Testament equally with 
the New. Every book relates to the dealings of God 
with the Jews, or with others by means of the Jews. As 
revealed religion was mixed up with every thing that 
concerned the Jews ; as all that was Jewish did, in fact, 
appertain to revealed religion, the history of that people 
is, to all intents and purposes, the record of revelation ; 
and whatever throws light upon them, illustrates their 
religion and ours. 

To ascertain this is, then, one object with which the 
scriptures may be read ; and no one has begun to study 
them to much purpose who has not made out, from them- 
selves, their nature and their design. 

Supposing that some clear ideas of the history, chro- 
nology, and geography of the Hebrew nation and their 
country has been obtained while pursuing the last-men- 
tioned object, a new and interesting one may be found 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES, 111 

in discovering the meaning of whatever customs seem 
strange, and whatever natural productions remarkable, 
in Judea. These are things which cannot be learned 
entirely from the scriptures themselves* but there are 
many books that teach more or less of them, and friends 
enough, it is to be hoped, near the reader who can 
satisfy his enquiries, or put him in the way ol satisfying 
himself. When he has once learned a new circumstance,, 
he may search for as many passages as it may explain. As 
one trifling instance ; — when he knows how it was the 
custom of the Jews to place themselves at meals, he may 
look for all the narratives in the bible which relate to 
what happened at such times. It may possibly surprise 
him to find how much light is thrown upon obscure 
passages by this one piece of information. He will be 
able to imagine the scene when Joseph's brothers ate 
before him; in the house of Saul when David had disap- 
peared from his place ; at the feast at Cana; in the abode 
of Simon, when one stood at the feet of Jesus, behind 
him, weeping; at the supper, when the beloved disciple 
lay in the bosom of Jesus; and on various occasions 
mentioned in the Acts when the disciples met at table. 
When he has informed himself how the worship of the 
synagogue was conducted, the reader will be struck with 
admiration, instead of perplexed at the accounts of 
whatever was done by Christ in the synagogues, either 
in the way of miracles or preaching. The narrative (in 



112 A GUIDE TO THE 

the fourth chapter of Luke) of his ministration in the 
synagogue at Nazareth, of his receiving the book, or 
scroll, and standing up to read, closing or rolling it up 
when he had read, and sitting down to address the wor- 
shippers; his delivering the book to the " minister/' and 
taking upon him, — stranger as he was and not known to 
be authorized, — to preach; — all this will be no longer 
incomprehensible, or supposed to be a violation of the 
usual rule. The performing of miracles in places of 
worship, and what the apostles did and suffered on similar 
occasions, will appear in a new light when the customs 
connected with the synagogue are understood. Much, 
very much more is made clear by what may be known 
concerning the temple ; and also respecting the dwellings 
of the Jews, their furniture and dress, their occupations, 
their administration of justice, their modes of celebrating 
births, marriages and funerals, &c. With this, may 
proceed an inquiry into the natural productions of the 
country. Previous to such an enquiry, no one would 
have an idea how much is lost by ignorance of the habits 
of the camel and the stork, the locust and the quail, the 
scorpion and the ostrich. There is frequent reference to 
perfumes and spices, to forest trees, shrubs and flowers, 
to vicissitudes of season and climate, on which the whole 
meaning of a saying, the entire significance of an inci- 
dent, may depend. To detect such meanings, to appre- 
hend this significance, is surely an object which may add 



STUDY 1 OF THE SCRIPTURES. 113 

new interest to the study of sayings and incidents whose 
sound has long been familiar to the ear . 

If a yet more engrossing object is wanted, the reader 
may turn to the making out the biographies of the per- 
sonages of sacred history. The lives of the Old Testa- 
ment personages are usually given simply and straight- 
forward. There is little more to be made out respecting 
Joseph, Samuel, David, and others of the most inte- 
resting actors in the narrative, than is told uninterrupt- 
edly and copiously. But in the New Testament, where 
all were contemporaries, they are mixed up together, 
acting variously in the same set of events — travelling in 
distant places at the same time, suffering under different 
tyrants in the same persecution, and interweaving their 
experiences around that of him who appointed them 
their various offices. There was, of course, a considerable 
resemblance in their fortunes ; and some readers, perhaps, 
might not, if questioned, be able to separate the adven- 
tures of Paul from those of Peter, as told in the book of 
Acts ; but it will be found that their experience was 
diversified in proportion to the varieties of their charac- 
ters : that they viewed and acted upon circumstances dif- 
ferently, according as one was more impetuous, another 
more gentle, a third more calmly energetic, a fourth 
more highly educated and more conversant with society 
than his companions. To ascertain these resemblances 



114 A GUIDE TO THE 

and these diversities, to compare the narratives, and 
digest from the whole a series of biographies, is one of 
the most interesting occupations that can be imagined ; 
and, if done in an enlightened manner, will be found to 
open up new sources of evidence, and to bring down new 
light into the gospel narratives in a manner which could 
not have been foreseen. This object will not be very 
rapidly attained and done with. Even that life, to illus- 
trate which all the others are related, — that life on which 
the most copious details are collected, cannot be made 
out satisfactorily without very close examination. The 
important point of the duration of our Lord's ministry 
remains, in the opinion of many, unsettled. The evi- 
dence on this point, as on most others of a like kind, is 
within the grasp of all who know enough of the succes- 
sion of the seasons in Palestine, and of the Jewish feasts, 
to be able to compare the notices of these things in the 
narrative, and to frame a little chronology out of them. 
Any careful reader may note how often wintry storms, 
seed times and harvests, are adverted to in the history of 
Jesus, and how many feasts he attended, and how these 
notices in the different evangelists may be adjusted to 
one another. A gradual satisfaction may thus be ob- 
tained ; and every established point will help to settle 
some point in another biography ; till the whole set of 
personages becomes distinguishable, and the whole series 
of lives consistent ; instead of all being a burden to the 
memory and a perplexity to the understanding. 






STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 115 

This distinction of the biographies will lead to a 
discrimination of the writings of the scripture personages. 
The epistles will no longer be known from one another 
only by the order in which they stand. The subject 
matter and style of each will be seen to be as unlike as 
the minds of their authors. Paul's will become distin- 
guishable at a glance, from their being as characteristic 
as his spoken words could ever have been. The majesty 
and calm energy of Peter's will appear to form a beautiful 
comment on the events and actions of his life ; and the 
exquisite beauty of James's will be seen to be of a wholly 
different cast from that of any other scripture composi- 
tion whatever. While engaged in this process of discri- 
mination, the student will find that instead of the perusal 
of one chapter being irksome, it will become difficult to 
leave an epistle unfinished, or, at least, to quit it till the 
topic under consideration is dismissed, however many 
breaks may occur through the arbitrary division into 
chapters. 

Such are some of the subordinate objects by which 
the reading of the scriptures may be made profitable and 
interesting : but it must ever be borne in mind that 
these are but subordinate objects. The study itself is 
only a means to a much higher object than any of these-r* 
the ascertainment of Christian doctrine and morals. Of 
the yet loftier end to which even this ascertainment is 



116 A GUIDE TO THE 

subservient, it is not our present office to speak : but 
we cannot too strongly insist on the consideration that 
the investigations we have recommended are but prepa- 
ratory to the all-important research into the truth which 
God has given to be our guide through life, and the 
exponent of his will. If this is contemplated with due 
earnestness, it will be seen how inadequate are the 
methods usually adopted for learning Christian doctrine 
and morals. 

It is commonly supposed that the doctrines of Chris- 
tianity are to be looked for in the discourses only of 
Jesus and his followers, and the morals of Christianity 
in the form of direct precepts. Misled by this supposi- 
tion, multitudes go through life with those confused 
notions of what they are to believe which cannot but 
arise out of an adoption of human explanations of the 
gospel, and a forced application of discourses designed 
to be no more than comments on doctrine which was to 
be learned in a very different manner. The same is the 
case with Christian morals : the common method of 
studying them being to look for them only in the form 
of direct precepts. Various, beautiful and rich as are 
the precepts of Jesus, they neither convey, nor were 
intended to convey more than a small part of his instruc- 
tions respecting the formation of the Christian character. 
Instead of its being enough to learn texts day by day, 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 117 

till every word recorded as spoken by Jesus is fixed in 
the memory, this practice (good as far as it goes) pro- 
ceeds but a very small way towards giving an acquaint- 
ance with those principles which formed the character of 
Christ to its moral perfection. To prove this, let any 
one copy out and arrange as he will, all that he can find 
said in the New Testament about the nature and character 
of God, and his purposes in sending Christ into the 
world ; and he will have but little that he could form into 
a profession of faith. Let any one copy out and arrange 
as he will, all that he can find said in the New Testament 
respecting the duty of man, and he will have very scanty 
and imperfect materials for the formation of a rule of 
duty. Many virtues and many vices are not mentioned 
at all ; some are mentioned only incidentally, and there 
is no attempt at arranging them in their proper order. 
All this proves, not any deficiency in the instruction 
provided for us, but only that if we look in the wrong 
direction, we shall not discover what we want. The 
wisest and best men, who could never learn enough of 
what Christianity is appointed to teach, have found that 
it taught more than they could learn in a life-time. 
Instead of becoming weary because they could meet 
with nothing new, these men have found more that is 
new, more that is wonderful, more that is beautiful, year 
by year, as long as their eyes could distinguish the sacred 
text, their memories retain its meaning, and their under- 



118 A GUIDE TO THE 

standings ponder its purposes. In them, the workings 
of revelation were answerable to its design, because 
they understood revelation. They knew that the doc- 
trines of the Gospel were to be found in the facts of its 
history, and the morals of the Gospel in the perfect 
character of him who brought it. 

Before Christ came, the Jewish nation had been 
taught, by experience as well as by express revelation, 
the great doctrine of the Unity of God. They had found 
that promises and threatenings made in one age were 
fulfilled in another; that there was a consistency in the. 
rule which governed them, an agreement among all the 
truths made known to them, which proved that the 
same God was over them all from age to age ; and that 
promises and threatenings made by their God respecting 
other nations were also fulfilled, proving that there was 
not a deity for every nation, as their heathen neighbours 
believed, but one Jehovah who ruled all the earth. 
Christ came, not to reveal this doctrine, which was 
already known, but to make it more widely known, and 
to reveal one other great truth. A Future Life had been 
hitherto speculated on and hoped for; but it was not 
known with any certainty that there was one till Christ 
was. raised from the dead. He alluded to it frequently 
in his discourses, and his followers afterwards enlarged 
eloquently upon it ; but the truth was revealed in the 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 11Q 

manner most unquestionable and most certain not to be 
misunderstood ; by Christ himself being made to enter 
on a life after death, in the presence of many witnesses. 
In this case, the doctrine is to be learned from the fact,^ 
and confirmed by the discourses, rather than learned 
from the discourses alone. In like manner, the acts 
which he did, and the things which he suffered teach us 
what his powers and his office were ; and the results 
which have followed inform us what was the purpose of 
God in sending him into the world. We are glad of any 
light cast upon these subjects by the words of Jesus ; but 
the facts are, and were designed to be, our best in* 
structors, the sources of our most complete knowledge. 
The facts of the gospel are, then, what we must study in 
order to learn Christian doctrine. We must ascertain 
and reason upon all that took place, and ascertain what 
state the world was in when Christ came, and how his 
coming operated upon the world ; and thence discover 
what we are to believe respecting the designs and 
workings of Providence in giving to man this new 
religion. 

No system of morals was ever made so perfect as the 
character of Christ. Rules which are written down may 
be misunderstood by some ; they may not suit the cir- 
cumstances of others ; and they will lose much of their 
Use and beauty as ages pass on, and knowledge increases. 



120 A GUIDE TO THE 

and men's ways of thinking and acting therefore change. 
But an example of perfect virtue continues to teach the 
best lessons, age after age, to persons of all degrees of 
intelligence and goodness. All children in all countries 
and times can feel the beauty of Christ's benevolence in 
feeding the hungry and healing the sick ; while few or 
none could understand or would regard mere rules about 
doing good. The holiest man now living may find some- 
thing more to imitate and strive after in the character of 
Christ; while mere precepts to be holy, just and good, 
might have ceased long ago to teach him more than he 
already practices. In like manner, the worst of men may 
be touched on hearing what Jesus underwent through the 
malice of the wicked, and how he bore his sufferings, and 
how he treated his enemies ; while the same man might 
turn away from all that was offered in the way of precept. 
As there is matter of interest to every bad man in the 
conduct and fate of Iscariot, and to every good man in 
the lives of the apostles, there is matter of near and dear 
concern to all in the perfect character of him who was 
especially offered as an example, and to whom more love 
and gratitude are due than to any one besides, except 
God who sent him. The words of Jesus, then, are to be 
regarded as the most valuable explanations, the most 
beautiful comments that can be obtained, on our duties : 
but the rule of duty itself must be the conduct of Jesus. 
What he did in his circumstances, what he would do in 



STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 121 

ours, must be the rule of our actions ; and it is a rule 
which we can never have done studying. The wiser we 
grow, the more able shall we become to discern the 
reasons of his conduct, and to discover therefore new 
motives for our own. The more benevolent we grow, the 
more touching will be the instances of his disinterested 
love to man, and therefore the more animating his 
example. The more pious we grow, the better shall we 
understand how he lived with God ; and the more able 
shall we become to love and trust and delight ourselves 
in his Father and our Father. Thus, the better we grow, 
the more enlarged will our views of duty be ; and in turn, 
the more enlarged our views, the better we shall grow ; 
so that there need be no end to what we learn from the 
Gospel : while, if we ^tudy no more than what Jesus said, 
without attending to his character, we shall not gather 
half the instruction which his mission was designed to 
afford us. 

The highest objects with which we can study the scrip- 
tures are now before us. We must study the life of Christ 
to learn what truth he came to teach us. We must study 
his character to learn what holiness he came to teach us. 
Once fairly engaged in this study, there is little fear that 
we shall read amiss. We shall not then grow weary of 
hearing some portions, while we remain ignorant of 
others. We shall no longer lament the confusion of our 

G 



122 A GUIDE TO THE STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES. 

ideas, or complain of the obscurity of religious truth. We 
shall no longer take up the bible as a task, and gladly lay 
it down at the close of a prescribed portion : but, remem- 
bering that it contains the record of most that is ascer- 
tained of God, of the best that is known of man, and of 
all that nature silently breathes forth, we shall resort to 
it as to a compendium of whatever it concerns us most 
to know. We shall find how it opens its treasures more and 
more to the discerning eye and the teachable spirit. We 
shall find (to use the words of one * who was wont to 
speak eloquently of the value of scripture truth) that " it 
supplieth us with business of a most worthy nature and 
lofty importance ; it setteth us upon doing things great 
and noble as can be ; it engageth us to free our minds 
from all fond conceits, and cleanse our hearts from all 
corrupt affections. It putteth us upon the imitation of 
God, and aiming at the resemblance of his perfections : 
upon obtaining a friendship, and maintaining a corres- 
pondence with the High and Holy One." 

* Barrow. 



0000 

Bacon and Kinnebrook, Printers, Norwich. 



BY THE SAME AUTHOR, 

TRADITIONS OF PALESTINE. 



" These extracts, as beautiful in composition as they are chaste in 
conception, will give an adequate idea of the general sco^e of the 
author's peculiar design. The subjects of the other scenes of course 
vary: in their tone they are precisely similar to those we have 
extracted from ; and several, if they do not excel them in the placid 
beauty of their style, in the richness of their imagery, in the admirable 
propriety with which they adhere to Syrian manners, at least are 
equal in these high qualities, and present them under new aspects. 
We would select from among them for its force of painting, and for 
the strange beauty of its subject, < The Wilderness Gladdened.' »— 
Westminster Review. 

" Her < Traditions of Palestine' indicated a genius of a high order. 
There was a lofty and vivid imagination, a habit of mind raised above 
the petty and selfish interests of the day, joined with a fervid elo- 
quence and an enlightened piety, in that work, which immediately 
proclaimed its authoress as one of the gifted few."— Spectator. 

" Miss M. has, by her < Traditions,' #c. taken a strong hold on the 
feelings of all who are acquainted with that beautiful volume. She 
has shewn that she is one of those to whom God has confided the 
golden key which unlocks the fountain of tears."— American Christian 
Examiner. 

" En ce terns de vagues et douloureuses aspirations, terns d'orgueil, 
et d'insunisance, il s'est rencontre une femme d'une ame tendre, 
naive, d'une imagination fraiche et jeune, qui, retranchee derriere des 
impressions d'enfance, et forte de sa foi, a recree cette Judee de 
miraculeuse memoire. Contemporaine de Christ, elle l'a vu, elle a 
entendu sa parole feconde. Ces traditions, au nombre de sept, sont 
toutes egalement riches d'images. Le mouvement dramatique de 
PAncien Testament, les passions terribles qu'il met en scene, avaient 
engage plusieurs poetes a en paraphraser des passages ; mais jusqu'ici 
Klopstock avait seul ose hasarder une Messiade. 11 est curieux que 
ce soit une fe mme qui, la premiere, ait marche sur ses traces."— 
Revue Encycloyedique. 



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